Labidochromis sp. "Zebra Eastern" "Gome"

GomeGOH-meh (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 sp. "Zebra Eastern" account →

Specific to Gome

  • 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 sp. "Zebra Eastern".

CARESNOT LISTED
Scientific size4 in10 cm total length
Temperature75–82 °F24–28 °C
pH7.7–8.6alkaline
Hardness (GH)very hardup to 446 ppm
Depth10–66 ft3–20 m
DietRock-associated aufwuchs grazer or invertebrate picker (genus-typical; exact mode not documented for this form)
Breedingmaternal mouthbrooder (presumed, genus-typical)not documented for this form; genus-typical broods run to a few dozen eggs
Sexual dimorphismYesThe trade name indicates vertical barring on the flanks; no further colour detail or sex-specific description has been published for this form.
PhotographsSee photosGoogle Images →

The Gome population

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

Colour reference: living Gome fish at malawi.si

About the species

Labidochromis sp. "Zebra Eastern" is an undescribed rock-dwelling cichlid of Lake Malawi, recorded from Gome on the Malawian shore and known to hobbyists only by this trade name. The "Zebra" tag signals vertical barring on the flanks, a pattern less common in Labidochromis than in the classic mbuna genera the term is usually applied to, and sets this form apart from plainer-bodied congeners such as the widely traded Labidochromis caeruleus. No formal description, authority, or FishBase entry exists for it.

Full Labidochromis sp. "Zebra Eastern" account →

Sources

  1. malawi.si — Labidochromis sp. "Zebra Eastern" "Gome"
  2. malawi.si — Labidochromis species and locality database
  3. Cichlid Room Companion — Labidochromis genus overview
  4. Konings, A. — Malawi Cichlids in their Natural Habitat (Cichlid Press)