Tramitichromis trilineatus "Chembe Beach"

Chembe BeachCHEHM-beh BEECH (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 Tramitichromis trilineatus account →

Specific to Chembe Beach

  • 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 Tramitichromis trilineatus.

CARESNOT LISTED
Temperature75–82 °F24–28 °C
pH7.7–8.6alkaline
Hardness (GH)very hardup to 446 ppm
Depthnot recorded
DietSand-sifting invertivore, foraging open sand for buried invertebrates (typical of Lethrinops relatives)
BreedingMaternal mouthbroodernot documented
Sexual dimorphismYesSexual dimorphism presumed typical of the genus; specific pattern not documented for this species.
PhotographsSee photosGoogle Images →

The Chembe Beach population

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

Colour reference: living Chembe Beach fish at malawi.si

About the species

Tramitichromis trilineatus is a sand-dwelling haplochromine cichlid documented from Chembe Beach at Cape Maclear, on the shore of Lake Malawi National Park. Its Latin epithet, "three-lined," describes a triple stripe pattern on the flank, and it belongs to a small genus of Lethrinops relatives whose males are known for one of the lake's more remarkable feats of animal architecture: building and defending a volcano-shaped sand bower to court females.

Full Tramitichromis trilineatus account →

Sources

  1. malawi.si — Tramitichromis trilineatus "Chembe Beach"
  2. Eschmeyer's Catalog of Fishes — Tramitichromis trilineatus
  3. Konings, A. — Malawi Cichlids in their Natural Habitat (Cichlid Press)