Aquarist Atlas
↑ Collection form of Cynotilapia sp. "Zebra Deep"

Cynotilapia sp. "Zebra Deep" "Three Peaks Reef"

Cynotilapia sp. "Zebra Deep" (Three Peaks Reef)

Three Peaks Reef — THREE PEEKS REEF (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 Cynotilapia sp. "Zebra Deep" account →

Specific to Three Peaks Reef

  • 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 Cynotilapia sp. "Zebra Deep".

CARESNOT LISTED
Genus type speciesCynotilapia afradescribed as Hemichromis afer Günther 1894
Scientific size3.5 in8.5 cm total length
Temperature75–82 °F24–28 °C
pH7.7–8.6alkaline
Hardness (GH)up to 446 ppm
Habitat watermoderately soft, alkaline, well-buffered79 ppmLake Malawi
Depth49–115 ft15–35 m
DietPicks loose diatoms, filamentous algae, and fine detritus from rock and sand using the genus's diagnostic unicuspid teeth, rather than scraping bound algal turf.
Breedingmaternal mouthbroodera few dozen eggs (genus-typical)
Sexual dimorphismYesMales show the blue, black-barred "zebra" pattern named in the trade name, with fuller expression and brighter fin edging than females; the specific female pattern is not documented.
PhotographsSee photosGoogle Images →

The Three Peaks Reef population

Cynotilapia sp. "Zebra Deep" "Three Peaks Reef" is the Three Peaks Reef population of Cynotilapia sp. "Zebra Deep", a geographic colour form from the Malawi coast of Lake Malawi in the southern part of the lake. It is the same species as Cynotilapia sp. "Zebra Deep", distinguished by its collection locality and local coloration; aquarists keep and breed it as a discrete, provenance-labelled line.

Colour reference: living Three Peaks Reef fish at malawi.si →

About the species

Cynotilapia sp. "Zebra Deep" is an undescribed mbuna recorded from Three Peaks Reef in the southern part of Lake Malawi, one of at least two distinct Cynotilapia colour forms documented from that single reef alongside Cynotilapia sp. "Deep Skov". "Zebra" in Cynotilapia trade nomenclature conventionally denotes a blue body crossed with black vertical bars, the pattern that gives the well documented C. sp. "Chinyankwazi" form its resemblance to Maylandia (formerly Pseudotropheus) zebra; "Deep" marks this as a population collected below the shallow reef zone most rock-dwelling mbuna occupy.

Full Cynotilapia sp. "Zebra Deep" account →

Sources

  1. malawi.si — Cynotilapia sp. "Zebra Deep" "Three Peaks Reef"
  2. malawi.si — Cynotilapia (Konings-based species database; Malawi genus overview)
  3. Konings, A. — Cichlids Yearbook, Volume 2 (Cichlid Press; "zebra"-patterned Cynotilapia forms and their resemblance to Maylandia zebra)
  4. Cichlid Room Companion — Cynotilapia (genus profile)
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