Nyassachromis sp. "Otter" "Otter Island"

Otter IslandOT-ter 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 Nyassachromis sp. "Otter" account →

Specific to Otter 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 Nyassachromis sp. "Otter".

CARESNOT LISTED
Scientific size4.5 in12 cm total length
Temperature75–82 °F24–28 °C
pH7.7–8.6alkaline
Hardness (GH)very hardup to 446 ppm
Depth16–115 ft5–35 m
DietOpen-water zooplanktivore; forages for planktonic crustaceans and other drifting invertebrates over sand near reef edges, in the manner of the lake's utaka.
Breedingmaternal mouthbroodernot documented for this form; expected modest (a few dozen eggs)
Sexual dimorphismYesGenus-typical pattern expected — blue to blue-grey breeding males with a dark humeral spot, plain silvery females — but not separately confirmed for this population.
PhotographsSee photosGoogle Images →

The Otter Island population

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

Colour reference: living Otter Island fish at malawi.si

About the species

Nyassachromis sp. "Otter" is an undescribed Lake Malawi cichlid recorded from Otter Island and neighbouring Otter Point in the southern part of the lake, within the Lake Malawi National Park area. Nyassachromis is a small genus of open-water, plankton-feeding haplochromines related in habit to the lake's utaka, schooling over sand near reef edges rather than living tight to rock. It is recognised informally in the field and aquarium literature, and no authority, year, FishBase number, or IUCN status should ever be attached to it.

Full Nyassachromis sp. "Otter" account →

Sources

  1. malawi.si — Nyassachromis sp. "Otter" "Otter Island"
  2. Cichlid Room Companion — Nyassachromis genus profile
  3. Konings, A. — Malawi Cichlids in their Natural Habitat (Cichlid Press; foremost Malawi authority)