''Ctenopharynx pictus'' is a species of

fish A fish (: fish or fishes) is an aquatic animal, aquatic, Anamniotes, anamniotic, gill-bearing vertebrate animal with swimming fish fin, fins and craniate, a hard skull, but lacking limb (anatomy), limbs with digit (anatomy), digits. Fish can ...

in the family

Cichlidae Cichlids () are a large, diverse, and widespread family of percomorph fish in the family Cichlidae, order Cichliformes. At least 1,760 species have been scientifically described, making it one of the largest vertebrate families, with on ...

. It is restricted to

Lake Malawi Lake Malawi, also known as Lake Nyasa in Tanzania and Lago Niassa in Mozambique, () is an African Great Lakes, African Great Lake and the southernmost lake in the East African Rift system, located between Malawi, Mozambique and Tanzania. It is ...

. It occurs throughout much of the lake, but mainly in rocky habitats at depths of . It is a

mouthbrooder Mouthbrooding, also known as oral incubation and buccal incubation, is the care given by some groups of animals to their offspring by holding them in the mouth of the parent for extended periods of time. Although mouthbrooding is performed by a va ...

, but the female will often release the young near nesting

kampango The kampango or kampoyo (''Bagrus meridionalis'') is a critically endangered species of large and predatory bagrid catfish that is endemic to Lake Malawi, Lake Malombe and the upper Shire River in Africa. It prefers areas near rocks in water sh ...

catfish. Their young are then brought up together.McKaye, K.R. (1985). Cichlid–catfish mutualistic defence of young in Lake Malawi, Africa. Oceologia 66: 358–363.

References

pictus Taxa named by Ethelwynn Trewavas Fish described in 1935 Taxonomy articles created by Polbot {{Pseudocrenilabrinae-stub