Spotted Tilapia

The Spotted tilapia (Pelmatolapia mariae) is a West African fresh and brackish water fish of the cichlid family. It is also commonly known as the spotted mangrove cichlid or black mangrove cichlid. Spotted mangrove cichlids have a short rounded snout and three anal spines. They are dark olive green to light yellowish in colour and have eight or nine dark bars on their sides which are more evident in young spotted mangrove cichlids than adults. They also have two to six dark spots between the bars on the middle of their side and they generally reach a maximum length of 300mm. Spotted mangrove cichlids have a rapid growth rate and maturation time. They also have high fecundity, simple food requirements and extensive tolerance of environmental variables such as water temperature, salinity, and pollution. These characteristics allow spotted mangrove cichlids to rapidly populate many areas that have an appropriate habitat. Typically spotted mangrove cichlids tend to be an aggressive and territorial species and research has found that internal reproductive androgenic factors can overrule the effect of size on dominance encounters in this species.