Electric blue hap

The electric blue hap (Sciaenochromis ahli) is a species of cichlid fish endemic to Lake Malawi. It prefers to live in caves and crevices in rocky substrates. This species can reach a length of 20 centimetres (7.9 in) TL. It can also be found in the aquarium trade.[2]

Electric blue hap
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Cichliformes
Family: Cichlidae
Genus: Sciaenochromis
Species:
S. ahli
Binomial name
Sciaenochromis ahli
(Trewavas, 1935)
Synonyms
  • Haplochromis ahli Trewavas, 1935
  • Cyrtocara ahli (Trewavas, 1935)

In the aquarium

The electric blue hap is a popular aquarium fish due to its colouration. It should be kept in tanks of no less than 150 litres. A semi aggressive fish, only one male is recommended per tank; however if large numbers are kept in a spacious enough environment, it is possible to keep more than one. Tank mates must be selected carefully. Large numbers prevent a single fish from being the target of aggression. The females are a drab grey in comparison and slightly smaller.[3] They prefer rocky exhibits with coral sand.

Breeding

As with many other cichlids, the electric blue hap is a mouth-brooder. The recommended ratio of males to females is 1:4. The female broods for 2–3 weeks. When the fry are released, they are around 1 cm.[4]

Etymology

The specific name of this fish honours the German zoologist Ernst Ahl (1898-1945) who originally described this species in 1926 as Haplochromis serranoides but this name had already been used by Charles Tate Regan in 1922, although Regan's name is a synonym of Haplochromis spekii.[5]

References
  1. Konings, A.; Kazembe, J.; Makocho, P.; Mailosi, A. (2018). "Sciaenochromis ahli". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2018: e.T60965A47225751. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T60965A47225751.en. Retrieved 16 November 2021.
  2. Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.) (2013). "Sciaenochromis ahli" in FishBase. April 2013 version.
  3. "Sciaenochromis fryeri". www.borstein.info. Retrieved 2018-11-25.
  4. "Electric Blue Hap | Sciaenochromis ahli".
  5. Christopher Scharpf & Kenneth J. Lazara (25 September 2018). "Order CICHLIFORMES: Family CICHLIDAE: Subfamily PSEUDOCRENILABRINAE (p-y)". The ETYFish Project Fish Name Etymology Database. Christopher Scharpf and Kenneth J. Lazara. Retrieved 15 January 2019.


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