Pundamilia nyererei from Lake Victoria. Photo by Kevin Bauman (CC BY 1.0) . A new report put out by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) has some bad news about Lake Victoria. The lake's native species are no strangers to mass extinctions. The...

Pundamilia nyererei "Makobe Island". Photo by Robert De Leon A new article has been added to this site's library. Written by Greg Steeves, the article gives some insight on what it takes to successfully keep, breed and raise Pundamilia nyererei "Makobe Island". Greg is a frequent contributor to...

Mbipia sp. "porthole". Photo by Greg Steeves Originally collected from Yala Swamp on the northeast shores of Lake Victoria, Mbipia sp. "porthole" made its appearance in the hobby over 10 years ago. References to this Mbipia species variant go back even further. It gained some popularity among...

Pundamilia sp. "red head". Photo by Greg Steeves Pundamilia sp. "red head" is another colorful species from Lake Victoria that has yet to be officially described. Surprisingly, this species hasn't gained much popularity in the hobby. Its bright red coloration and relatively mild temperament...

Maturing Haplochromis sp. "Kisuule". Photo by Greg Steeves Despite all the loses of native species since the introduction of the Nile Perch to Lake Victoria, new fish like Haplochromis sp. "Kisuule" are still being found. H. sp. "Kisuule" has yet to be officially described, but some people have...

A short video and species description by Greg Steeves of the Lake Victoria snail eating cichlid Platytaeniodus sp. "red tail sheller". Originally found throughout Lake Victoria, Platytaeniodus sp. "red tail sheller" is one of the many species that has suffered from the introduction of the...

Pundamilia nyererei. Photo by Robert De Leon The vast diversity of cichlid species, especially within the confines for a lake or river, has intrigued scientists. Various hypothesis have been put to the test and while they help explain some of the diversity, there are still many questions that...

Lates niloticus (Nile Perch). Photo by smudger888 (CC BY 2.0) The introduction of the Nile Perch (Lates niloticus) into Lake Victoria resulted in the devastation of the local ecosystem. The native Haplochromine species became food for the large, fast growing and aggressive new species...

Astatotilapia aeneocolor. Photo by Dave Hansen A new article on Astatotilapia aeneocolor by Greg Steeves has been added to the site's library. Originally found in Lake George and Kazinga Channel, this Lake Victoria Basin species spends most of it's time feeding along the papyrus reeds, while...

Haplochromis (Harpagochromis) vonlinnei. Photo by Greg Steeves Haplochromis vonlinnei, sometimes referred to as Harpaglochromis vonlinnei, is a predatory species originally found in and around the Mwanza Gulf of Lake Victoria. Due to the introduction of the Nile Perch in the 1950s, H...

Some of the many haplochromine species An interesting article by Les Kaufman on the importance of biodiversity for an ecosystem's resilience. Kaufman is a professor of biology at Boston University. He has been interested in cichlids since he was a student at Johns Hopkins University. Les...

Platytaeniodus degeni. Photo be Greg Steeves Platytaeniodus degeni, aka Haplochromis degeni, was originally collected in Lake Victoria. This species was thought extinct in the wild but some specimens were found about 10 years ago. This species is also alive and well in captivity at zoos and in...

Tugenchromis pickfordi fossils. Photo from publication . The discovery of new cichlid fossils is supporting the idea that early hybridization contributed to the diversity of cichlid species found today. Genetic testing done of Lake Victoria cichlids pointed to similar conclusions (See Feb. 12th...

Enterochromis paropius. Photo by Greg Steeves Enterochromis paropius is one of a few species who's numbers appear to be growing in Lake Victoria. After almost disappearing following the introduction of the Nile Perch, E. papopius is bouncing back. Despite the encouraging details, this species...

Pundamilia pundamilia. Photo by Greg Steeves Pundamilia pundamilia are found in Mwanza Gulf at the southern part of Lake Victoria. Within the gulf there are various locations where this species is found. The male pictured above comes from the waters around Hippo Point. In the aquarium P...

Diagram from article New research published in Nature Communications claims to explain how so many different species evolved in Lake Victoria in a short period of time. The study titled "Ancient hybridization fuels rapid cichlid fish adaptive radiations" determined that an explosion of species...

Xystichromis phytophagus. Photo by Dave Hansen A real beauty originally from Lake Victoria, Xystichromis phytophagus is now found in the protective papyrus stands of Lake Kanyaboli. X. phytophagus is possibly extinct in Lake Victoria due to the Nile Perch and hybridization due to cloudy water...

Pundamilia nyererei Mwanza Gulf. Photo by Greg Steeves. When I think of Lake Victoria cichlids the species that usually comes to mind is Pundamilia nyererei. Their bright colors they so eagerly display make them a treat to watch. P. nyererei are hardy fish that adapt well to a variety of water...

Haplochromis sp. "ruby". Photo by Greg Steeves Another beautiful Victorian cichlid, although not from Lake Victoria, is the Haplochromis sp. "ruby". The Lake Victoria Basin is made up of many lakes, streams and swamps surrounding the much larger Lake Victoria. Cichlids from this area are...

Pseudocrenilabrus multicolor victoriae. Photo by Greg Steeves A unique cichlid found in rivers and streams in the Lake Victoria basin and even in the upper Nile River. Pseudocrenilabrus multicolor victoriae is one of two subspecies, the other being Pseudocrenilabrus multicolor multicolor. The...