Aquarist Atlas
↑ Collection form of Chindongo sp. "Elongatus Mozambique Brown"

Chindongo sp. "Elongatus Mozambique Brown" "Lumbaulo"

Lumbaulo — loom-bah-OO-loh (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 Mozambique Brown" account →

Specific to Lumbaulo

  • 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 Mozambique Brown".

CARESNOT LISTED
Scientific size4 in10 cm total length
Temperature75–82 °F24–28 °C
pH7.7–8.6alkaline
Hardness (GH)very hardup to 446 ppm
Depth7–33 ft2–10 m
DietAufwuchs grazer - algae, diatoms and associated microinvertebrates combed from rock biofilm (genus-typical Chindongo)
Breedingmaternal mouthbroodernot documented for this form; expected modest, genus-typical (a few dozen eggs)
Sexual dimorphismYesTrade name and field references mark this population's dominant males as brown-toned, following the elongatus complex's pattern of extensive colour divergence among near-identical populations; females and subordinate males are expected to be plainer and duller, as in Chindongo elongatus generally. Specific pattern detail beyond the dominant male body tone has not been documented in the sources compiled here.
PhotographsSee photosGoogle Images →

The Lumbaulo population

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

Colour reference: living Lumbaulo fish at malawi.si →

About the species

Chindongo sp. "Elongatus Mozambique Brown" is an undescribed rock-dwelling cichlid from Lake Malawi, recorded from Lumbaulo and belonging to the elongatus complex - a sprawling assemblage of small, algae-grazing mbuna anchored by the described species Chindongo elongatus but comprising more than thirty named and undescribed locality forms distinguished chiefly by colour. It has never been given a formal scientific name. It is best understood as one of several locality forms in this group still awaiting formal description, recognised through field and hobby literature, principally the work of Ad Konings, rather than a taxonomic publication.

Full Chindongo sp. "Elongatus Mozambique Brown" account →

Sources

  1. malawi.si — Chindongo sp. "Elongatus Mozambique Brown" "Lumbaulo"
  2. malawi.si — Chindongo species and locality-form database (Konings-based; distribution, biotope)
  3. Cichlid Room Companion — Chindongo genus and mbuna taxonomy (Ad Konings, curator)
  4. Li, S., Konings, A.F. & Stauffer, J.R. Jr. 2016 — A revision of the Pseudotropheus elongatus species group (Teleostei: Cichlidae) with description of a new genus and seven new species. Zootaxa 4168(2): 353-381
  5. Konings, A. — Malawi Cichlids in their Natural Habitat (Cichlid Press; foremost Malawi field authority)