Sciaenochromis benthicola "Domira Bay"

Domira Baydoh-MEE-rah 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 Sciaenochromis benthicola account →

Specific to Domira 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 Sciaenochromis benthicola.

CARESNOT LISTED
Temperature75–82 °F24–28 °C
pH7.7–8.6alkaline
Hardness (GH)very hardup to 446 ppm
Depthnot recorded
DietPiscivorous predator, presumed bottom-associated hunter of the sand-rock interface based on its epithet
BreedingMaternal mouthbroodernot documented
Sexual dimorphismYesSexual dichromatism presumed typical of the genus (as in S. fryeri, males more vividly coloured); not documented in detail for this species.
PhotographsSee photosGoogle Images →

The Domira Bay population

Sciaenochromis benthicola "Domira Bay" is the Domira Bay population of Sciaenochromis benthicola, 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 Sciaenochromis benthicola, distinguished by its collection locality and local coloration; aquarists keep and breed it as a discrete, provenance-labelled line.

Colour reference: living Domira Bay fish at malawi.si

About the species

Sciaenochromis benthicola is a predatory haplochromine cichlid documented from Domira Bay on Lake Malawi's western shore, a lesser-known relative of the genus best represented in the hobby by the vivid electric-blue Sciaenochromis fryeri. Its epithet, "bottom-dweller," hints at a fish more closely tied to the lake floor than its showier cousins — a slender hunter of the sand-rock interface rather than a mid-water cruiser.

Full Sciaenochromis benthicola account →

Sources

  1. malawi.si — Sciaenochromis benthicola "Domira Bay"
  2. Eschmeyer's Catalog of Fishes — Sciaenochromis benthicola
  3. Konings, A. — Malawi Cichlids in their Natural Habitat (Cichlid Press)