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SpeciesScientists Discover Mysterious New Fish in the Red Sea – and Have Never Seen It AgainOceanEye to eye with Britain's hidden sharks at SharkAdemy - OceanographicRiversIn October, biologists surveying a New York harbor for invasive fish pulled up a bright yellow one. It wasn't an invasive species at allOceanShedd Aquarium Sends Shark Eggs to Bolster Wild PopulationsSpeciesA rare fish has been found in Lake Ontario, North America, whose entire body is golden. It is a nati..OceanThe Great Sea Reef Is Fiji’s Wildest Dive, and a New Frontier for ConservationOceanEckerd College professor contributes to designating Biscayne Bay an Important Shark and Ray AreaSpeciesRio Verde Grande Survey Identifies Fifty-Three Fish Species Facing Flow ReductionsFisheriesAdams River Salmon Run in Thompson-NicolaIndiaHilsa production dropped 26% in five years, fisheries minister tells parliamentSpeciesScientists Discover Mysterious New Fish in the Red Sea – and Have Never Seen It AgainOceanEye to eye with Britain's hidden sharks at SharkAdemy - OceanographicRiversIn October, biologists surveying a New York harbor for invasive fish pulled up a bright yellow one. It wasn't an invasive species at allOceanShedd Aquarium Sends Shark Eggs to Bolster Wild PopulationsSpeciesA rare fish has been found in Lake Ontario, North America, whose entire body is golden. It is a nati..OceanThe Great Sea Reef Is Fiji’s Wildest Dive, and a New Frontier for ConservationOceanEckerd College professor contributes to designating Biscayne Bay an Important Shark and Ray AreaSpeciesRio Verde Grande Survey Identifies Fifty-Three Fish Species Facing Flow ReductionsFisheriesAdams River Salmon Run in Thompson-NicolaIndiaHilsa production dropped 26% in five years, fisheries minister tells parliament
EveryFish

Cichlids

Tilapia, the pearlspot (karimeen), angelfish, discus and the cichlids of the African lakes. 58 fish on EveryFish so far.

Cichlids are a family of perch-like fish of fresh and brackish water in Africa, the Americas and South Asia. With more than 1,700 described species and many more awaiting names, they are one of the largest families of vertebrates. They have a second set of jaws in the throat that lets them handle many foods, and nearly all of them care for their eggs and young, many by carrying them in their mouths.

Evolution's showcase

In the great lakes of East Africa, Malawi, Tanganyika and Victoria, cichlids have split into hundreds of species each, with jaws and teeth shaped for scraping algae, crushing snails, eating fish, plucking scales from other fish or sifting sand. Lake Victoria's cichlids evolved in roughly 15,000 years, a blink in evolutionary time. Many were lost after the Nile perch was introduced, a famous case of the harm an introduced predator can do.

Tilapia and karimeen

Tilapias, especially the Nile tilapia, are among the most farmed fish in the world, raised in more than a hundred countries because they grow fast and tolerate poor water. India has its own cichlids: the green chromide or pearlspot, karimeen, of Kerala's backwaters, Kerala's state fish, and the small orange chromide. The angelfish, discus and oscar of South America and the mbuna of Lake Malawi are favourites of aquarists.

Famous cichlid fish

Nile tilapiaFarmed in more than a hundred countriesDiscusA disc-shaped Amazon cichlidOscarA large South American aquarium cichlidZebra mbunaA rock-dwelling cichlid of Lake MalawiElectric yellow cichlidThe electric yellow cichlidFrontosa cichlidA banded cichlid of Lake Tanganyika

Still to be written: Green chromide, Pterophyllum scalare.

Further reading

WaterRivers and lakesEstuaries and mangrovesCoasts and shelvesCoral reefsOpen oceanDeep seaPolar and cold seasCaves and springsBetween sea and river
UseFood fishFarmedAquarium fishSport fishingCulture and faithVenomous or dangerousInvasiveScience and research
OrderBest knownA to ZOldest firstNewest firstBy size
🇬🇹 Guatemala and 4 moreConvict cichlid Striped Central American cichlid popular in home aquariumsCichlid · Rivers and lakes · 1867 🇭🇳 Honduras and 3 moreJaguar cichlid Large predatory cichlid from Central American lakesCichlid · Rivers and lakes Demasoni cichlid 🇹🇿 TanzaniaDemasoni cichlid Small striped cichlid from Lake MalawiCichlid · Rivers and lakes WorldAuratus cichlid Small, colourful cichlid from Lake MalawiCichlid · Rivers and lakes Sub-Saharan AfricaPrincess cichlid A cooperative schooling cichlid from Lake Tanganyika.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes 🇧🇷 Brazil and 2 morePeacock bass Large predatory cichlids from South American rivers known for sport fishing and invasive impact.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes WorldHaplochromis A large ray-finned fish genus from East Africa known for rapid evolution and aquarium popularity.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes · 1888 🇲🇼 Malawi and 2 moreMalawi eyebiter Predatory cichlid from Lake Malawi known for its narrow body and unique feeding habits.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes 🇧🇮 Burundi and 3 moreGiant cichlid The largest living cichlid species, native to Lake Tanganyika in Africa.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes · 1899 🇵🇪 PeruAgassiz's dwarf cichlid Small Amazonian cichlid with colourful males.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes WorldCichlid Diverse freshwater fish family known for parental care and rapid evolution.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes · 1835 Sub-Saharan AfricaHump-head cichlid A blue cichlid with a forehead hump from Lake MalawiCichlid · Rivers and lakes WorldWhite spotted cichlid A small rock-dwelling cichlid from Lake Tanganyika.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes Sub-Saharan AfricaRed Zebra Cichlid A colourful rock-dwelling cichlid from Lake Malawi.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes WorldOcellated shell dweller Small cichlid from Lake Tanganyika living in snail shellsCichlid · Rivers and lakes Sub-Saharan AfricaBlunthead cichlid A colourful algae-eating cichlid from Lake Tanganyika.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes 🇨🇷 Costa Rica and 1 moreMidas cichlid Large aggressive cichlid from Central AmericaCichlid · Rivers and lakes 🇳🇮 NicaraguaRed devil cichlid Large aggressive cichlid from Central American lakesCichlid · Rivers and lakes 🇲🇽 Mexico and 3 moreSalvin's cichlid A colourful Central American river fish with a yellow body and red belly.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes 🇺🇸 United States and 1 moreTexas cichlid The only cichlid native to the United StatesCichlid · Rivers and lakes 🇹🇿 TanzaniaPundamilia nyererei A small cichlid from Lake Victoria named after Tanzania's first president.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes WorldUaru A large South American cichlid from clear Amazon streams.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes · 1840 Sub-Saharan AfricaBumblebee cichlid A Lake Malawi cichlid that cleans catfish and steals their eggs.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes Sub-Saharan AfricaKenyi cichlid A bright yellow and blue cichlid from Lake Malawi.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes Sub-Saharan AfricaGiraffe hap A sand-ambushing cichlid from Lake Malawi.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes Sub-Saharan AfricaJewel cichlid Brightly colored African cichlids kept in aquariums for their vivid breeding colours and parental care.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes Sub-Saharan AfricaZebra mbuna Small rock-dwelling cichlid from Lake MalawiCichlid · Rivers and lakes 🇻🇪 VenezuelaKeyhole cichlid Small peaceful cichlid from South AmericaCichlid · Rivers and lakes 🇧🇷 Brazil and 3 moreFlag cichlid A South American cichlid from river basins in Brazil and Bolivia.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes 🇧🇷 BrazilPterophyllum A genus of laterally compressed freshwater cichlids known as angelfish.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes · 1824 🇻🇪 Venezuela and 2 moreAltum angelfish Large freshwater angelfish from the Orinoco Basin.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes 🇵🇪 Peru and 1 moreGreen terror A large, aggressive South American cichlid kept in aquariums.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes 🇧🇷 BrazilDiscus Round, colourful cichlids from the Amazon basin.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes · 1840 🇧🇷 Brazil and 3 moreOscar Large South American cichlid popular in aquariumsCichlid · Rivers and lakes · 1831 🇲🇽 Mexico and 4 moreJack Dempsey Aggressive cichlid native to Central AmericaCichlid · Rivers and lakes 🇲🇽 Mexico and 2 moreFiremouth cichlid Central American cichlid with a bright red throatCichlid · Rivers and lakes 🇧🇷 Brazil and 3 moreSpeckled peacock bass A large South American cichlid prized for sport and food.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes WorldBlood parrot cichlid A bright orange hybrid cichlid bred for the aquarium trade.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes · 1986 🇻🇪 Venezuela and 1 moreRam cichlid Small colourful freshwater fish from South AmericaCichlid · Rivers and lakes · 1948 WorldHeros efasciatus A fruit-eating cichlid from the Amazon basin.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes 🇳🇬 Nigeria and 1 moreKribensis Small colourful cichlid from West AfricaCichlid · Rivers and lakes · 1901 Sub-Saharan AfricaElectric yellow cichlid Bright yellow cichlid from Lake Malawi popular in home aquariums.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes Livingston's cichlid Sub-Saharan AfricaLivingston's cichlid A predatory cichlid from Lake Malawi that feigns death to hunt.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes Sub-Saharan AfricaFrontosa cichlid Large deep-water cichlid from Lake Tanganyika with a prominent forehead hump.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes 🇧🇴 Bolivia and 1 moreBolivian ram A small, peaceful cichlid from the Amazon basin.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes Sub-Saharan AfricaVictoria tilapia A cichlid native to Lake Victoria with unique colour patterns.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes 🇿🇦 South Africa and 4 moreMozambique tilapia A hardy cichlid from southeastern Africa, now farmed globally and listed as a major invasive species.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes 🇮🇳 India and 1 moreOrange chromide Small spotted cichlid from India and Sri LankaCichlid · Rivers and lakes

Photo credits on this page

The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.

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