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...

Lipochromis sp. "Matumbi hunter". Photo by Greg Steeves Normally evolutionary traits help species survive in their environments. Drastic changes in a species' habitat can cause certain traits to become useless. In the case of Lake Victoria cichlids, the introduction of a new predator by humans...

Nile Perch in Lake Victoria. Courtesy photo from East Africa Business Week Originally introduced into Lake Victoria as a sport and commercial fish, the Nile Perch appears to be facing the same fate as the native species it displaced. Since its introduction in the 1950s, the large, predatory...

Floating fish cages. Tom Otieno Dwindling fish stocks and water hyacinth have taken a toll on the fishing industry in Lake Victoria. To turn things around there have been various plans to help boost the stocks of tilapia and Nile perch. Both of these non-native species are to blame for the...

Haplochromine by Andrea Reid Despite the mass extinctions caused by the introduction of the Nile perch into Lake Victoria, some haplochromines species have managed to survive by living in the lake's most inhospitable areas. By escaping to the low oxygen and highly acidic waters surrounding...