Aquarist Atlas
↑ Collection form of Cheilochromis euchilus

Cheilochromis euchilus "Maleri Island"Malawi Thicklip

Cheilochromis euchilus (Maleri Island, Matema, Mbenji Island)

Maleri Island — mah-LEH-ree EYE-land (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 Cheilochromis euchilus account →

Specific to Maleri Island

  • 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 Cheilochromis euchilus.

IUCNLEAST CONCERN · 2019
CARESNOT LISTED
Genus type speciesCheilochromis euchilusdescribed as Haplochromis euchilus Trewavas 1935 · this species
Scientific size14 in35 cm total length
Temperature75–82 °F24–28 °C
pH7.7–8.8alkaline
Hardness (GH)slightly hard to hard, alkaline179–268 ppm
Habitat watermoderately soft, alkaline, well-buffered79 ppmLake Malawi
Depth0–26 ft0–8 m
DietSucks invertebrates from rock crevices (fleshy lips)
BreedingMaternal mouthbrooderNot documented for this species; genus-typical for a large Malawi haplochromine (a modest number of large eggs)
Sexual dimorphismYesDominant breeding males turn metallic blue with two horizontal stripes and darker bars; females and non-dominant fish stay plain silver, and males grow larger
PhotographsSee photosGoogle Images →

The Maleri Island population

Cheilochromis euchilus "Maleri Island" is the Maleri Island population of Cheilochromis euchilus, a geographic colour form from the Malawi coast of Lake Malawi in the southern part of the lake. It is the same species as Cheilochromis euchilus, distinguished by its collection locality and local coloration; aquarists keep and breed it as a discrete, provenance-labelled line.

Colour reference: living Maleri Island fish at malawi.si →

About the species

Cheilochromis euchilus, the Malawi thicklip, is a large haplochromine cichlid endemic to Lake Malawi and instantly recognizable by the swollen, fleshy lips that fan out into finger-like lobes on both jaws. Those lips are a feeding tool: the fish presses them against rock crevices to form a seal and sucks out the small invertebrates sheltering inside. It is the only species in its genus, a quietly built predator that most of the time wears plain silver and only rarely shows the electric blue of a breeding male.

Full Cheilochromis euchilus account →

Sources

  1. malawi.si — Cheilochromis euchilus "Maleri Island"
  2. Eschmeyer's Catalog of Fishes — Cheilochromis euchilus (species record)
  3. FishBase — Cheilochromis euchilus (Malawi thick lip)
  4. GBIF — Cheilochromis euchilus occurrence and taxonomy
  5. iNaturalist — Malawi Thicklip (Cheilochromis euchilus)
  6. IRMNG — Cheilochromis Eccles & Trewavas, 1989
  7. IUCN Red List — Cheilochromis euchilus "Maleri Island"
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