Boulengerochromis microlepis "Kalambo Lodge"
Kalambo Lodge — kah-LAHM-boh LOJ (approx.)
The fish
How this cichlid is built, and everything about how it lives, eats and breeds, is shared with the species — this page doesn't repeat it.
Read the full Boulengerochromis microlepis account →Specific to Kalambo Lodge
- Collection locality & coordinates
- Local coloration — best judged from the living-fish photo
- Kept as a single-provenance line, never crossed with other collection points
Care facts below are the species' — shared with Boulengerochromis microlepis.
The Kalambo Lodge population
Boulengerochromis microlepis "Kalambo Lodge" is the Kalambo Lodge population of Boulengerochromis microlepis, a geographic colour form from the Zambia coast of Lake Tanganyika in the southern part of the lake. It is the same species as Boulengerochromis microlepis, distinguished by its collection locality and local coloration; aquarists keep and breed it as a discrete, provenance-labelled line.
Colour reference: living Kalambo Lodge fish at tanganyika.si →
About the species
Boulengerochromis microlepis, the emperor cichlid of Lake Tanganyika, is widely regarded as the largest cichlid on Earth, reaching at least 32 inches (80 cm) and around 10 pounds (4.5 kg). It is the sole member of its tribe — a benthopelagic top predator that hunts the lake's open-water sardines and sand-dwelling fishes, then channels everything it has into a single, enormous brood of young. Many biologists believe it breeds only once and dies of exhaustion guarding its fry, a 'big-bang' life history almost unique among cichlids, though the claim is more debated than it first appears.
Full Boulengerochromis microlepis account →Sources
- tanganyika.si — Boulengerochromis microlepis "Kalambo Lodge"
- Eschmeyer's Catalog of Fishes — Boulengerochromis microlepis (species record)
- FishBase — Boulengerochromis microlepis (Giant cichlid)
- FishBase Field Guide — Boulengerochromis microlepis (size, depth, weight)
- GBIF — Boulengerochromis microlepis (occurrence & taxonomy)
- Koblmüller et al. (2015), 'Big fish, little divergence: phylogeography of Lake Tanganyika's giant cichlid Boulengerochromis microlepis', Hydrobiologia