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Lake Malawi cichlids — species, locations & maps

Lake Malawi cichlids — species, locations & maps
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Tramitichromis sp. 'chembe shallow' Chembe
Genus: Tramitichromis
Biotope: Very shallow water along Chembe Beach (Cape Maclear), at about 1 m to 2 m depth.
Breeding: Males weakly defended a tall volcano-like sand-castle with a horizontal spawning platform; the rim had a raised lip on one side, and the bowers lacked a circular demarcation ditch at the base.
Special notes: Tramitichromis is characterized by a distinctive lower pharyngeal bone with long, slender teeth, including markedly elongated anterior teeth with backward-bent tips, and by a downward-projecting anterior blade of the pharyngeal bone. The lower gill-rakers are robust and can form a near-horizontal grid that separates heavier sand from lighter food items during sand-sifting. In August 2006, males of this form were rare at Chembe and it was apparently not their breeding season; it has been suggested that it may be conspecific with Tramitichromis sp. ‘lituris yellow gular’.

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Photo: © Ad Konings
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Lake Malawi cichlids — species, locations & maps.
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