Aquarist Atlas
↑ Collection form of Labidochromis lividus

Labidochromis lividus "Likoma Island"

Likoma Island — lee-KOH-mah 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 Labidochromis lividus account →

Specific to Likoma 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 Labidochromis lividus.

IUCNLEAST CONCERN · 2018
CARESNOT LISTED
Scientific size2.8 in7.1 cm standard length
Temperature75–79 °F24–26 °C
pH7.7–8.6alkaline
Depth3–26 ft1–8 m
DietHerbivore / algae-picker
BreedingMaternal mouthbrooder~7–18 fry (genus-typical; species-specific data unpublished — FLAGGED)
Sexual dimorphismYesMales show dark body with thin pale blue vertical bars in nuptial colour; females are light brown with grey-brown bars. Dimorphism moderate — less pronounced than in many mbuna.
PhotographsSee photosGoogle Images →

The Likoma Island population

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

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

About the species

Labidochromis lividus is a diminutive mbuna endemic to the rocky western shore of Likoma Island in Lake Malawi — one of the most restricted ranges of any described cichlid, with a total area of occupancy barely larger than a small town. It lives not on the open rock face but in the narrow caves and crevices where sand meets stone, creeping forward to graze algae from patches inaccessible to larger competitors. Sexually active males advertise in electric blue-barred livery, the colour that gave the species its Latin name.

Full Labidochromis lividus account →

Sources

  1. malawi.si — Labidochromis lividus "Likoma Island"
  2. Lewis, D.S.C. (1982). A revision of the genus Labidochromis (Teleostei: Cichlidae) from Lake Malawi. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 75: 189–265
  3. FishBase — Labidochromis lividus (Lewis, 1982)
  4. Catalog of Fishes — Labidochromis lividus (species record, spid=8583)
  5. GBIF — Labidochromis lividus Lewis, 1982 (taxon key 2371664)
  6. The ETYFish Project — Family CICHLIDAE part 4: Labidochromis lividus etymology