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We have another great issue for your reading pleasure covering cichlids from all over the world. We kick off with our friend and noted Mexican aquarist Juan Miguel Artigas Azas’ account of a recent three week trip to the Rio Negro. This first part of a two-part article describes in detail his behavioral observations of many of the popular cichlids exported from this river system. Like us, I am sure you will eagerly await Part 2 in the July issue. When speaking of Benthochromis from Lake Tanganyika, people usually think of the gorgeously colored cichlid adorned with extremely filamentous caudal and ventral fins called B. tricoti in the hobby. The genus also contains Benthochromis melanoides, a much lesser known species which lacks the stunning colors and finnage of the former, but which at closer inspection by Thomas Andersen reveals itself to be just as interesting. Hobbyist contributions to the field of cichlid science continue to prove invaluable. Greg Steeves reviews the biology and husbandry of the Lake Victorian cichlid Neochromis greenwoodi and also presents his recent unambiguous and repeated observations supported by uploaded video of male brood care behavior in this species. Quite amazing! Anton Lamboj introduces us to a new, as yet undescribed rheophilic ‘buffalohead’ cichlid, Steatocranus sp. ‘Ultraslender’ from the rapids of the Congo. This small species belongs to the so-called Steatocranus tinanti clade, which holds the most slender, elongated, and big-mouthed cichlids within the genus. It’s a great fish and we can only hope for its importation into the USA in the near future. Ad Konings reviews the systematics of the newly-described (2012) Hemitaeniochromis brachyrhynchus and presents some very interesting in situ behavioral observations suggesting that this big-eyed Malawi cichlid is an opportunistic egg hunter that fools spawning cichlids and gobbles their eggs while they are in the act. We round out the issue with our regular features: My Favorite 6 Cichlids, this time by Central American cichlid specialist Willem Heijns, and What’s New by Laif DeMason. Enjoy this issue and enjoy your cichids! |
Wayne S. Leibel, Editor  |
