Simochromis diagramma
| Simochromis diagramma | ||||||||||||
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Simochromis diagramma |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name of the genus | ||||||||||||
| Simochromis | ||||||||||||
| Boulenger , 1898 | ||||||||||||
| Scientific name of the species | ||||||||||||
| Simochromis diagramma | ||||||||||||
| ( Günther , 1894) |
Simochromis diagramma is a species of cichlid that occurs in the East African Lake Tanganyika and in the rapids of Kisimba-Kilia in its only outlet, the Lukuga .
features
Simochromis diagramma is 19.5 cm long and has a slightly high-backed, laterally flattened body. The sides of the body are colored steel blue and patterned with ten to 13 dark stripes; the back is olive green and the belly is light yellowish. A dark point or line drawing can be seen on the head. Simochromis diagramma is relatively similar to the closely related genus Pseudosimochromis . The head profile is rounded, but as in Pseudosimochromis less steep than in Tropheus . The mouth is subordinate due to a shorter lower jaw. In most cases, Simochromis has only 19 spines in the dorsal fin and only three in the anal fin, while Tropheus has 20 or 22 in the dorsal fin and five or six in the anal fin. The caudal fin of Simochromis diagramma is light or transparent, whereas that of the Tropheus species is the same color as the body or is darker. Females stay a little smaller and are less brightly colored.
- Scale formula : SL 36-40 or 62-74.
Way of life
Like the species of the genus Tropheus , Simochromis diagramma lives on the rocky shores of Lake Tanganyika and feeds on the algae that grow on it. It avoids greater depths and is mainly observed in areas above a water depth of ten meters. In contrast to Tropheus , Simochromis diagramma can also be found on rocks that are covered by mud, sand or other sediments. Simochromis diagramma is a mouthbrooders , wherein the females perform the brutplege. Young fish up to a size of more than 1.5 cm can still find refuge in the female's mouth.
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c Simochromis diagramma on Fishbase.org (English)
- ↑ a b Pierre Brichard: The Great Book of Tanganyika Cichlids. With all the other fish on Lake Tanganyika. Bede Verlag, 1995, ISBN 978-3927997943 , pp. 272-273, 403-409.