Maylandia sp. "Zebra Long Pelvic" "Mdowa"

Mdowam-DOH-wah (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 Maylandia sp. "Zebra Long Pelvic" account →

Specific to Mdowa

  • 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 Maylandia sp. "Zebra Long Pelvic".

CARESNOT LISTED
Scientific size4.5 in11 cm total length
Temperature75–82 °F24–28 °C
pH7.7–8.6alkaline
Hardness (GH)very hardup to 446 ppm
Depth10–66 ft3–20 m
DietAufwuchs grazer (herbivore; genus-typical for zebra-complex Maylandia)
BreedingMaternal mouthbrooder (polygynous; no pair bond)not documented for this form; genus-typical broods run roughly 10-30 eggs
Sexual dimorphismYesMales distinguished by elongated, filamentous pelvic fins (the form's namesake trait) and the blue-and-black barring typical of zebra-complex males; females plainer and without the extended fins.
PhotographsSee photosGoogle Images →

The Mdowa population

Maylandia sp. "Zebra Long Pelvic" "Mdowa" is the Mdowa population of Maylandia sp. "Zebra Long Pelvic", a geographic colour form from the Malawi coast of Lake Malawi in the far northern part of the lake. It is the same species as Maylandia sp. "Zebra Long Pelvic", distinguished by its collection locality and local coloration; aquarists keep and breed it as a discrete, provenance-labelled line.

Colour reference: living Mdowa fish at malawi.si

About the species

Maylandia sp. "Zebra Long Pelvic" is an undescribed mbuna from a short run of reefs on Lake Malawi's north-central-western shore, named for the one trait that is actually documented about it: males grow noticeably elongated, filamentous pelvic fins, well beyond the short, rounded pelvics of most zebra-complex Maylandia. Beyond that feature and the standard zebra body pattern, little has been published specifically about this population, which is known only by its trade name and has never received a formal scientific description.

Full Maylandia sp. "Zebra Long Pelvic" account →

Sources

  1. malawi.si — Maylandia sp. "Zebra Long Pelvic" "Mdowa"
  2. malawi.si — Maylandia sp. "Zebra Long Pelvic" 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.)