Aquarist Atlas
↑ Collection form of Otopharynx sp. "Brooksi Nkhata"

Otopharynx sp. "Brooksi Nkhata" "Nkhata Bay"

Otopharynx sp. "Brooksi Nkhata" (Nkhata Bay)

Nkhata Bay — n-KAH-tah BAY (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 Otopharynx sp. "Brooksi Nkhata" account →

Specific to Nkhata Bay

  • 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 Otopharynx sp. "Brooksi Nkhata".

CARESNOT LISTED
Genus type speciesOtopharynx auromarginatusdescribed as Tilapia auromarginata Boulenger 1908
Scientific size6 in15 cm total length
Temperature75–79 °F24–26 °C
pH7.5–8.5alkaline
Hardness (GH)up to 446 ppm
Habitat watermoderately soft, alkaline, well-buffered79 ppmLake Malawi
Depth16–66 ft5–20 m
DietPresumed piscivore taking small fishes from the sand-rock margin, following O. brooksi; not directly documented for this population.
Breedingmaternal mouthbroodernot documented for this form; genus-typical, a few dozen eggs
Sexual dimorphismYesDichromatism assumed on general Malawi cichlid grounds; the specific pattern at Nkhata Bay is not documented.
PhotographsSee photosGoogle Images →

The Nkhata Bay population

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

Colour reference: living Nkhata Bay fish at malawi.si →

About the species

Otopharynx sp. "Brooksi Nkhata" is an undescribed cichlid recorded at Nkhata Bay, on the north-western shore of Lake Malawi. Its trade name links it to Otopharynx brooksi, a described predatory relative first documented far to the south near Cape Maclear, making this a population well outside the well-studied core of that species' known range.

Full Otopharynx sp. "Brooksi Nkhata" account →

Sources

  1. malawi.si — Otopharynx sp. "Brooksi Nkhata" "Nkhata Bay"
  2. malawi.si — Otopharynx (Konings-based species database; Malawi genus overview)
  3. Konings, A. — Malawi Cichlids in their Natural Habitat (Cichlid Press; foremost Malawi field authority)
  4. Cichlid Room Companion — Otopharynx (genus profile)
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