Erstbeschreibung als Metriaclima benetos:
ZooBank:836B8E37-5114-4993-B420-3374D6F8F8B1.
- Stauffer, Jay Richard Jr. & N.J. Bowers, K.A. Kellogg, K.R. McKaye. 1997. "A revision of the blue-black Pseudotropheus zebra (Teleostei: Cichlidae) complex from Lake Malawi, Africa, with a description of a new genus and ten new species". The Proceedings of the Academy Natural Sciences Philadelphia. 148:189-230 (crc00049)
Artenschutz: Metriaclima benetos wurde durch die Internationale Union für die Erhaltung der Natur (IUZN) in der Roten Liste bedrohter Arten bewertet als (NT) gefährdet (2018). Two years ago (2018) I thought that rock-dwelling mbuna would be relatively safe from being overfished, but the situation in the southern part of the lake is so dire with 60+ trawlers dragging nets 24 hours seven days a week that most traditional fishermen have resorted to mosquito nets scraping the last tiny fry out of the lake or to gill nets catching mbuna in rocky areas. Most of these rocky areas are within National Park waters but not so the reefs in Mazinzi Bay. If I had to evaluate M. benetos again today I would place them back to the status VULNERABLE.