African Cichlids II, Tanganyika I, Tropheus

Review

by Ken Boorman, 19-Aug-2003.

The endemic and ever-popular Tropheus species from Lake Tanganyika are the subject of this 190 page recently published book. It is very well laid out with a section at the front outlining the natural history and aquarium care of these fishes. This section will be extremely helpful for novice Tropheus keepers as well as those more experienced, right through to commercial breeders. There is something interesting and educational for everyone in this "must read" section.

The majority of the book is taken up by the discussion and depiction of all known Tropheus species (6) and varieties (120+). These are broken up into 13 distinct lineages by the author, but the number of species may be more - possibly 14-16. We'll just have to wait for a taxonomist to devote a lot of time to this group before the final number is decided. Of course, there are new discoveries all the time too. There is even a section in this book that includes all the latest collecting locales and colour variants that were too new to include in the main body of this work. With all the photos and drawings of fishes, this book will be an invaluable source for those wanting to ID and check the validity of their pure strains.

Each of the varieties is depicted, by either a full-colour photograph or a very exacting colour drawing. The descriptive text for each of these varieties is broken down to the following paragraph headers: Distribution - Discovered - First Importation - Colouration - Remarks.

Of course, this being an Aqualog book, there is a large section at the back of the book where colour updates of all new discoveries for the fishes in this genus can be included so that you always have the most up to date photo catalogue of these enigmatic and attractive Rift-Lake cichlids.

Also, as an added bonus, there is 31.5" x 22.5" poster depicting the lake and the locales of all the populations and colour varieties mentioned in the book.

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