Oreochromis tanganicae, Tanganyika tilapia

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Oreochromis tanganicae (Günther, 1894)

Tanganyika tilapia
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Classification / Names Common names | Synonyms | Catalog of Fishes(genus, species) | ITIS | CoL | WoRMS | Cloffa

Teleostei (teleosts) > Cichliformes (Cichlids, convict blennies) > Cichlidae (Cichlids) > Pseudocrenilabrinae
Etymology: Oreochromis: Latin, aurum = gold + Greek, chromis = a fish, perhaps a perch (Ref. 45335).
More on author: Günther.

Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range Ecology

Freshwater; benthopelagic. Tropical; 24°C - 26°C (Ref. 2059); 3°S - 9°S

Distribution Countries | FAO areas | Ecosystems | Occurrences | Point map | Introductions | Faunafri

Africa: endemic to Lake Tanganyika, in the coastal area and river mouths (Ref. 5166, 118630).

Size / Weight / Age

Maturity: Lm ?  range ? - ? cm
Max length : 42.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 118638)

Short description Morphology | Morphometrics

Dorsal spines (total): 15 - 17; Dorsal soft rays (total): 11-15; Anal spines: 3; Vertebrae: 30 - 31. Diagnosis: A large, deep-bodied species, with wide bands of teeth in the jaws (Ref. 118638). Adult males are covered with complex bright pale blue markings, over the head, flanks and unpaired fins; the background colour can vary from greyish, through yellow to bright red; the lower part of the head is grey-white; the tailfin often head a red background and the dorsal fin has a broad red margin (Ref. 118638). Females and non-territorial males are generally a plain silvery colour, with pearly spots on the flanks; they occasionally exhibit vertical bars and/or horizontal dark bars (Ref. 118638).

Biology     Glossary (e.g. epibenthic)

It is the dominant tilapiine species in Lake Tanganyika, despite the presence of the normally invasive Nile tilapia (Ref. 118638). It is not normally found far up into inflowing rivers (Ref. 118638). It has been reported to browse the surface film of sheltered waters; stomachs contained large quantities of the diatoms Pinnularia and Navicula with some sand-grains (Ref. 2). A maternal mouthbrooder; males defend territories in shallow water in sheltered sandy or muddy areas, and dig simple pits in the substrate (Ref. 118638). A large fast-growing species well represented in fishery catches in and around Lake Tanganyika; currently being promoted as an aquaculture species and occasionally exported for the aquarium trade (Ref. 118638).

Life cycle and mating behavior Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae

A maternal mouthbrooder; males defend territories in shallow water in sheltered sandy or muddy areas, and dig simple pits in the substrate (Ref. 118638).

Main reference Upload your references | References | Coordinator : Kullander, Sven O. | Collaborators

Trewavas, E., 1983. Tilapiine fishes of the genera Sarotherodon, Oreochromis and Danakilia. British Mus. Nat. Hist., London, UK. 583 p. (Ref. 2)

IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435)

  Least Concern (LC) ; Date assessed: 31 January 2006

CITES

Not Evaluated

CMS (Ref. 116361)

Not Evaluated

Threat to humans

  Harmless





Human uses

FAO - Publication: search | FishSource |

More information

Common names
Synonyms
Metabolism
Predators
Ecotoxicology
Reproduction
Maturity
Spawning
Spawning aggregation
Fecundity
Eggs
Egg development
Age/Size
Growth
Length-weight
Length-length
Length-frequencies
Morphometrics
Morphology
Larvae
Larval dynamics
Recruitment
Abundance
BRUVS
References
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Aquaculture profile
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Ciguatera
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Gill area
Otoliths
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Internet sources

AFORO (otoliths) | Alien/Invasive Species database | Aquatic Commons | BHL | Cloffa | BOLDSystems | Websites from users | Check FishWatcher | CISTI | Catalog of Fishes: genus, species | DiscoverLife | ECOTOX | FAO - Publication: search | Faunafri | Fishipedia | Fishtrace | GenBank: genome, nucleotide | GloBI | Google Books | Google Scholar | Google | IGFA World Record | MitoFish | Otolith Atlas of Taiwan Fishes | Public aquariums | PubMed | Reef Life Survey | Socotra Atlas | Tree of Life | Wikipedia: Go, Search | World Records Freshwater Fishing | Zoological Record

Estimates based on models

Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref. 82804):  PD50 = 0.5000   [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.01905 (0.00827 - 0.04391), b=3.01 (2.82 - 3.20), in cm total length, based on LWR estimates for this (Sub)family-body shape (Ref. 93245).
Trophic level (Ref. 69278):  2.0   ±0.00 se; based on food items.
Resilience (Ref. 120179):  Medium, minimum population doubling time 1.4 - 4.4 years (Preliminary K or Fecundity.).
Fishing Vulnerability (Ref. 59153):  Low to moderate vulnerability (32 of 100).
Nutrients (Ref. 124155):  Calcium = 14.9 [6.0, 78.9] mg/100g; Iron = 1.23 [0.51, 2.99] mg/100g; Protein = 17.6 [15.7, 19.5] %; Omega3 = 0.292 [0.104, 0.856] g/100g; Selenium = 88.7 [30.1, 203.7] μg/100g; VitaminA = 12 [2, 57] μg/100g; Zinc = 1.73 [0.92, 4.17] mg/100g (wet weight);