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The Cave Peacocks of Lake Malawi
by Patrick Tawil
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| The gorgeous Aulonocara jacobfreibergi from
Otter point, with dazzling yellow, orange-red, blue-white, and mauve color
patches. |
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| These A. jacobfreibergi come from the northern
part of the lake. Above, the well known Tanzanian eastern form (Hongi),
characterized by it markedly retrognathous snout. Below, a male from the
western coast (Chirwa). |
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| Even in female Otter Point A. jacobfreibergi,
the anal fin is more reddish than in other localities; below: a retrognathous
and duller female from Hongi. |
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| In my opinion, the most beautiful cave-dwelling Aulonocara,
after the one from Otter Point, is this form from Undu Reef, with its deep
sulphur yellow shade. It is either a well differentiated subspecies of
A. jacob- freibergi or a different species, depending on how one
considers the intermediate populations. |
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| Aulonocara sp. ‘lwanda’ (above) and A.
sp. ‘walteri’ (below) are the less richly colored forms in the group (apart
from the ‘trematocranus masinje’), resembling half-grown individuals of
A. jacobfreibergi. Still, in fully grown males, the unpaired fins
are notably developed and white to yellow-edged. |
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| The rather drab and enigmatic A. sp. ‘trematocranus
masinje’: a “missing link” or a fixed natural hybrid? Photo by Ad Konings. |
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| The very seldom imported cave-dweller Aulonocara
sp. ‘Jalo’ is a puzzling assemblage of characteristics. Is it a west coast
A. jacobfreibergi type with A. steveni-like coloration, or a cave
adapted offshoot of the stuartgranti type? Female below. |
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| A close-up of the head of A. sp. ‘Jalo’. Note
the vivid blue coloration, which differs from the violet-blue found in
members of the A. jacobfreibergi super-species. The deeply-cut mouth
is distinctive of A. sp. ‘Jalo’. |
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| Subordinate A. sp. ‘Jalo’ males as well as
females show characteristic melanic spots on the flanks, sometimes found
in some A. stuartgranti types such as A. koningsi (below)
but not in the A. jacobfreibergi group. Note also the similarly
rounded back and the blue and yellow stripes in the rather short caudal
fin. |
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| Another probable case of ecological niche swing: A.
saulosi (above, a male from Ungi, Mozambique). Despite its duller blue
and its more sandy habitat, this species may well be an offshoot of the
A. stuartgranti super-species, close to A. hansbaenschi (below
a male from Ntekete, near the Mozambique coast) with which it shares similar
overall pattern and geographical distribution. The vivid blue and red coloration
may have faded due to greater predation pressure in this poorly sheltered
habitat. |
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