Chindongo sp. "Elongatus Masimbwe" "Masimbwe Island"

Masimbwe Islandmah-SEEM-bweh 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 Chindongo sp. "Elongatus Masimbwe" account →

Specific to Masimbwe 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 Chindongo sp. "Elongatus Masimbwe".

CARESNOT LISTED
Scientific size4 in10 cm total length
Temperature75–82 °F24–28 °C
pH7.7–8.6alkaline
Hardness (GH)very hardup to 446 ppm
Depth7–49 ft2–15 m
DietEpilithic algae grazer (herbivore; genus-typical for Chindongo, the former "elongatus" complex)
BreedingMaternal mouthbrooder (polygynous; no pair bond)not documented for this form; genus-typical broods for small mbuna run roughly 10-25 eggs
Sexual dimorphismYesColour not documented specifically for this form; males of the genus typically show blue ground colour with dark barring, females plainer, consistent with the wider elongatus complex.
PhotographsSee photosGoogle Images →

The Masimbwe Island population

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

Colour reference: living Masimbwe Island fish at malawi.si

About the species

Chindongo sp. "Elongatus Masimbwe" is an undescribed mbuna from the Masimbwe and Mbamba island group near Likoma, in the middle of Lake Malawi, part of the slender-bodied "elongatus complex" that gives the genus Chindongo its name and its most distinctive feature. It has never received a formal scientific description, and its colouration and biology beyond genus-typical expectations are not documented in the sources available here.

Full Chindongo sp. "Elongatus Masimbwe" account →

Sources

  1. malawi.si — Chindongo sp. "Elongatus Masimbwe" "Masimbwe Island"
  2. malawi.si — Chindongo sp. "Elongatus Masimbwe" locality records (Konings/Bauer database)
  3. Konings, A. — Malawi Cichlids in their Natural Habitat (Cichlid Press)
  4. Cichlid Room Companion — Lake Malawi cichlid reference (Ad Konings et al.)