Checklist of the Malawi "Hap" Species Flock (by Color Pattern)



bars & stripeshoriz. stripes3 spotssad- dlesoblique stripeoblique spot rowno pattern
uro- taeniarost- ratusmany barsfew barsorna- tusblot- chesgo to Mbuna

Here, you can navigate to lists of Malawi haplochromine cichlids of the "Hap" species flock (the non-mbuna), grouped by their melanic (black) color patterns. Click on the button most closely matching the fish of interest to go to a list of species with this pattern. In each list, the colored genus and species names are linked to pictures at this site. Tip: Be sure to scroll down on each picture page for the caption and any additional pictures. (Or, to look by genus and species, go to Checklist of the Malawi "Hap" Species Flock (Alphabetically); the authority and year of publication for each name are given there, along with links to the citation of the original description and to all the pictures. For images only, see Picture List for the Malawi "Hap" Species Flock.)

1. Bars and stripes (presumed primitive)

bars & stripes Back to top of page

2. One or two horizontal stripes

horiz. stripes Back to top of page

3. Three spots

3 spots Back to top of page

4. Saddles

sad- dles Back to top of page

5. Oblique stripe

oblique stripe Back to top of page

6. Oblique row of spots

oblique spot row Back to top of page

7. No obvious pattern (plain silvery)

no pattern Back to top of page

8. Two or three rows of small spots, stripe on caudal peduncle

uro- taenia Back to top of page

9. Two or three rows of small spots; no stripes

rost- ratus Back to top of page

10. Many vertical bars (6+ below dorsal fin base)

many bars Back to top of page

11. Few wide vertical bars (~4 below dorsal fin base)

few bars Back to top of page

12. Bars alternating with spots on back, or Y-shaped bars

orna- tus Back to top of page

13. Large blotches

blot- ches Back to top of page


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    The Cichlid Fishes of Lake Malawi, Africa: MalawiCichlids.com

    Last Update: 28 July 2006
    Web Author: M. K. Oliver, Ph.D.
    Copyright © 1997-2008 by M. K. Oliver - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED