the cichlid fish of africa: evolution's rainbow
DESCRIPTION
Paideia class given at Reed College in 2010 to a general audience on how awesome cichlid fish are.TRANSCRIPT
![Page 1: The Cichlid Fish of Africa: Evolution's Rainbow](https://reader034.vdocuments.site/reader034/viewer/2022052213/548fbff3b47959072a8b4b64/html5/thumbnails/1.jpg)
The Cichlid Fish of AfricaThe Cichlid Fish of Africa
![Page 2: The Cichlid Fish of Africa: Evolution's Rainbow](https://reader034.vdocuments.site/reader034/viewer/2022052213/548fbff3b47959072a8b4b64/html5/thumbnails/2.jpg)
What’s a cichlid?
![Page 3: The Cichlid Fish of Africa: Evolution's Rainbow](https://reader034.vdocuments.site/reader034/viewer/2022052213/548fbff3b47959072a8b4b64/html5/thumbnails/3.jpg)
![Page 4: The Cichlid Fish of Africa: Evolution's Rainbow](https://reader034.vdocuments.site/reader034/viewer/2022052213/548fbff3b47959072a8b4b64/html5/thumbnails/4.jpg)
Cichlids (sick-lids)
• Are a family of fish
• Found mainly in Africa and South
America
• A shit ton of species
![Page 5: The Cichlid Fish of Africa: Evolution's Rainbow](https://reader034.vdocuments.site/reader034/viewer/2022052213/548fbff3b47959072a8b4b64/html5/thumbnails/5.jpg)
Kenya
Tanzania
Uganda
Rwanda
Burundi
Zambia
Lake Malawi
Lake Tanganyika
Lake VictoriaThe Great
Lakes of
Africa
Malawi
![Page 6: The Cichlid Fish of Africa: Evolution's Rainbow](https://reader034.vdocuments.site/reader034/viewer/2022052213/548fbff3b47959072a8b4b64/html5/thumbnails/6.jpg)
>1300Cichlids of Africa
245Great Lakes of
North America
215Europe
~600Hawaiian Islands
# Fish SpeciesLocation
All one family!
How many species?
![Page 7: The Cichlid Fish of Africa: Evolution's Rainbow](https://reader034.vdocuments.site/reader034/viewer/2022052213/548fbff3b47959072a8b4b64/html5/thumbnails/7.jpg)
Who cares about cichlids?
• Fish farmers
(and fish eaters)
• Hobbyists
• Biologists
![Page 8: The Cichlid Fish of Africa: Evolution's Rainbow](https://reader034.vdocuments.site/reader034/viewer/2022052213/548fbff3b47959072a8b4b64/html5/thumbnails/8.jpg)
Diversity- color andDiversity- color and
morphologymorphology
![Page 9: The Cichlid Fish of Africa: Evolution's Rainbow](https://reader034.vdocuments.site/reader034/viewer/2022052213/548fbff3b47959072a8b4b64/html5/thumbnails/9.jpg)
Jaws
• Cichlids have two sets of jaws!
– Just like Alien
• Inner jaws mash food
• Outer jaws have teeth adapted
to their diet
![Page 10: The Cichlid Fish of Africa: Evolution's Rainbow](https://reader034.vdocuments.site/reader034/viewer/2022052213/548fbff3b47959072a8b4b64/html5/thumbnails/10.jpg)
Fish food
• Plankton
• Aufwuchs : algae and the
microorganisms that live on it
• Sponges– “like eating cardboard laced with indigestible fibers, ground glass in the form
of siliceous spicules, not to mention noxious chemicals”
• Other fish (piscivory)
• Other fishes’ scales (lepidophagy)
• Caviar (oophagy)
![Page 11: The Cichlid Fish of Africa: Evolution's Rainbow](https://reader034.vdocuments.site/reader034/viewer/2022052213/548fbff3b47959072a8b4b64/html5/thumbnails/11.jpg)
Parenting skills
• Parental care is rare in fishes,
but common in cichlids
• Some cichlids use their big
mouths to carry eggs and fry!
• Some guard their fry in nests,
chasing off predators
![Page 12: The Cichlid Fish of Africa: Evolution's Rainbow](https://reader034.vdocuments.site/reader034/viewer/2022052213/548fbff3b47959072a8b4b64/html5/thumbnails/12.jpg)
Hooking up
• Cichlids have a variety of different matingsystems
(1) Polygyny with Lekking
Lek- gathering of males,competitve mating display
![Page 13: The Cichlid Fish of Africa: Evolution's Rainbow](https://reader034.vdocuments.site/reader034/viewer/2022052213/548fbff3b47959072a8b4b64/html5/thumbnails/13.jpg)
Hooking up (for life)
• (2) Monogamy (aw)
• Monogamy rare inanimals, esp. fish
• Why monogamy?– Biparental care
– Secure a high quality mate& territory
![Page 14: The Cichlid Fish of Africa: Evolution's Rainbow](https://reader034.vdocuments.site/reader034/viewer/2022052213/548fbff3b47959072a8b4b64/html5/thumbnails/14.jpg)
Movies!
• “Jewel of the Rift” - Lake Tanganyika
![Page 15: The Cichlid Fish of Africa: Evolution's Rainbow](https://reader034.vdocuments.site/reader034/viewer/2022052213/548fbff3b47959072a8b4b64/html5/thumbnails/15.jpg)
Fish room tour
![Page 16: The Cichlid Fish of Africa: Evolution's Rainbow](https://reader034.vdocuments.site/reader034/viewer/2022052213/548fbff3b47959072a8b4b64/html5/thumbnails/16.jpg)
Julidochromis AKA Julies
Monogamy
Breed in rocky
caves/crevices
Aggressive
females
![Page 17: The Cichlid Fish of Africa: Evolution's Rainbow](https://reader034.vdocuments.site/reader034/viewer/2022052213/548fbff3b47959072a8b4b64/html5/thumbnails/17.jpg)
Astatotilapia burtoni
• Lekking males - 2 phenotypes T and NT
• Maternal Mouthbrooders
– Females become aggressive when brooding