Mbuna is the common name for a large group of African cichlids from Lake Malawi, and are members of the haplochromine family. The name mbuna means "rockfish" in the language of the Tonga people of Malawi. As the name implies, most mbuna are cichlids that live among the piles of rocks and along the rocky shores of Lake Malawi, as opposed to the utaka, cichlids that live in the open water or on sandy shores or soft substrates. Some species of mbuna are highly sexually dimorphic, although many are not. Almost all of the cichlid species of Lake Malawi, including mbuna and non mbuna such as the utaka, are believed to have descended from one or a very few species that became isolated in the lake. With rising water levels, new habitats could be colonized and the many isolated rocky outcrops allowed new mbuna species to form. Their striking colors, intriguing behavioral characteristics, and relative hardiness make them very popular despite their unique demands for the home aquarist.
Pseudotropheus is a genus of fishes in the family Cichlidae. These mbuna cichlids are endemic to Lake Malawi in Eastern Africa.
The terms shell dwellers or shelldwellers, shell-breeding, or ostracophil are descriptive terms for cichlid fish that use the empty shells of aquatic snails as sites for breeding and shelter. The terms have no taxonomic basis, although most shell-dwelling cichlids are from Lake Tanganyikas lamprologine lineage. Many shell dwelling cichlids are popular with fishkeepings and are frequently kept in aquaria.
Maylandia or Metriaclima is a genus of haplochromine cichlids endemic to Lake Malawi in East Africa. They belong to the mbuna (rock-dwelling) haplochromines.
Cynotilapia is a genus of haplochromine cichlids. All fishes in these genus form part of the mbuna flock, the rock-dwelling fishes of Lake Malawi, in the rift valley of East Africa. All species are polygamous, maternal, ovophile mouthbrooders and carry their fry in this fashion for about 20–30 days.
Melanochromis is a genus of haplochromine cichlids endemic to Lake Malawi in Eastern Africa. Ecologically, they belong to the rock-dwelling mbuna cichlids of Lake Malawi.
Iodotropheus is a small genus of cichlids endemic to Lake Malawi in east Africa. The genus is distinguished from other genera of mbuna by the upper lip which is usually connected medially to the skin of the snout by a frenum; by its small, terminal mouth; by the outer teeth of both jaws, which are unequally bicuspid and loosely spaced, the tooth shafts inclined slightly toward the jaw symphysis; by the anterior teeth of the upper jaw being much longer and more robust than the lateral and posterior teeth. The rusty cichlid or lavender mbuna, Iodotropheus sprengerae is the most commonly encountered member of the genus in the aquarium trade.
The kampango or kampoyo is a critically endangered species of large and predatory bagrid catfish that is endemic to Lake Malawi, Lake Malombe and the upper Shire River in Africa. It prefers areas near rocks in water shallower than 50 m (160 ft), but it also occurs deeper and over a sandy or muddy bottom.
Diplotaxodon is a small genus of seven formally described, as well as a number of undescribed, deep-water species of cichlid fish endemic to Lake Malawi in east Africa. These fishes represent a remarkable adaptive radiation of offshore and deep-water adapted fish descended from ancestral shallow water forms. They include the dominant zooplankton-feeding fish of the offshore and deep-water regions of the lake, as well as a number of larger species that appear to feed on small pelagic fishes. Adult sizes range from 10 to 30 cm in total length, depending on species.
Pseudotropheus elegans is a species of cichlid endemic to Lake Malawi. This species can reach a length of 13.2 centimetres (5.2 in) SL. It can also be found in the aquarium trade.
Maylandia livingstonii is a species of cichlid native to Lake Malawi and Lake Malombe. This species can reach a length of 15 centimetres (5.9 in) TL. It can also be found in the aquarium trade. The specific name of this fish honours the Scottish explorer and missionary David Livingstone (1813-1873).
The elongate mbuna is a species of cichlid endemic to Lake Malawi where it is known from Mkata Bay and Mbamba Bay. It prefers areas with rocky substrates where it can graze on algae. It can reach a length of 9.5 centimetres (3.7 in) SL. It can also be found in the aquarium trade.
Pseudotropheus saulosi is a species of cichlid endemic to Lake Malawi in East Africa, where it lives in areas with rocky substrates. It is classified as a dwarf-mbuna and was first described by Ad Konings in 1990, who gave it the specific name saulosi in honour of Saulos Mwale who caught over 3,000 specimens in a single day on the expedition which collected the type. It comes from an area of the lake called Taiwan Reef, and from nowhere else. This fish can also be found in the aquarium trade.
The redbreast tilapia is a species of fish in the family Cichlidae. It is found widely in the southern half of Africa. Its natural habitats are freshwater lakes and freshwater marshes. It is known as the redbreast kurper in South Africa.
Tropheops is a genus of cichlids endemic to Lake Malawi.
Endothiodon is an extinct genus of large dicynodont from the Late Permian. Like other dicynodonts, Endothiodon was an herbivore, but it lacked the two tusks that characterized most other dicynodonts. The anterior portion of the upper and lower jaw are curved upward, creating a distinct beak that is thought to have allowed them to be specialized grazers.
Synodontis nebulosus, known as the cloudy squeaker, or clouded squeaker, is a species of upside-down catfish that is native to the lower Zambezi River basin of Malawi, Mozambique, Zambia and Zimbabwe. It was first described by German naturalist and explorer Wilhelm Peters in 1852, from a specimen collected in the Zambezi River at Tete, Mozambique. The species name nebulosus is derived from the Latin word nebulosus, meaning "foggy", "cloudy", or "full of mist".
Biseridens is an extinct genus of anomodont therapsid, and one of the most basal anomodont genera known. Originally known from a partial skull misidentified as an eotitanosuchian in 1997, another well-preserved skull was found in the Qingtoushan Formation in the Qilian Mountains of Gansu, China, in 2009 that clarified its relationships to anomodonts, such as the dicynodonts.
Concavispina is an extinct genus of thalattosaur reptile from the early Late Triassic Xiaowa Formation of Guangling, Guizhou, southern China. It contains a single species, Concavispina biseridens. It is known only from the holotype ZMNH M8804, a nearly complete 364 cm long skeleton. Concavispina can be differentiated from other thalattosaurs by possessing two rows of blunt teeth on the anterior part of the maxilla and a V-shaped notch on the dorsal margin of each neural spine in the dorsal (back) vertebrae. Both its generic and specific names refer to these autapomorphies, as Concavispina means "concave spine" and biseridens means "two rows of teeth". It is thought to be most closely related to Xinpusaurus, as both taxa share three derived characters: a maxilla that is curved upward at its anterior end, a humerus that is wider near the shoulder than near the elbow, and the presence of less than five cervicals.
Placidochromis boops is a species of deep-water African cichlid endemic to the southern portion of Lake Malawi. This species can reach a length of up to 11.2 centimetres (4.4 in) SL.
