Aquarist Atlas
↑ Collection form of Neolamprologus gracilis

Neolamprologus gracilis "Kapampa"

Kapampa — kah-PAHM-pah (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 Neolamprologus gracilis account →

Specific to Kapampa

  • 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 Neolamprologus gracilis.

IUCNLEAST CONCERN · 2025
CARESNOT LISTED
Scientific size3.5 in9 cm total length
Temperature75–82 °F24–28 °C
pH7.5–9alkaline
Depth16–75 ft5–23 m
DietMicropredator: zooplankton and small benthic invertebrates picked from water column and rock surfaces
BreedingCave substrate spawner; cooperative colonial breederSmall broods typical of the brichardi complex; exact counts rarely reported in the literature
Sexual dimorphismYesSubtle — males tend to grow slightly larger and develop longer fin extensions; pairs are most reliably distinguished by behavior at a spawning site
PhotographsSee photosGoogle Images →

The Kapampa population

Neolamprologus gracilis "Kapampa" is the Kapampa population of Neolamprologus gracilis, a geographic colour form from the Democratic Republic of the Congo coast of Lake Tanganyika in the north-central part of the lake. It is the same species as Neolamprologus gracilis, distinguished by its collection locality and local coloration; aquarists keep and breed it as a discrete, provenance-labelled line.

Colour reference: living Kapampa fish at tanganyika.si →

About the species

Neolamprologus gracilis is a small, slender rock-dwelling cichlid endemic to Lake Tanganyika, and one of the daintiest members of the famous "fairy cichlid" group built around Neolamprologus brichardi. Rarely larger than 3.5 in (9 cm), it carries trailing lyretail extensions that can rival its own body in length and breeds in the same cooperative, multi-generational colonies that made its relatives hobby icons. It is the kind of fish that does not look or move like a cichlid until it defends a crevice.

Full Neolamprologus gracilis account →

Sources

  1. tanganyika.si — Neolamprologus gracilis "Kapampa"
  2. Eschmeyer's Catalog of Fishes: Neolamprologus gracilis
  3. FishBase: Neolamprologus gracilis
  4. O'Reilly et al. 2003 — Climate change decreases aquatic ecosystem productivity of Lake Tanganyika (Nature)
  5. Cohen et al. 2016 — Climate warming reduces fish production and benthic habitat in Lake Tanganyika (PNAS)
  6. Lake Tanganyika: Status, challenges, and opportunities for research (ScienceDirect)