Editing Cichlid

{{Short description|Family of fishes}}
{{Hatnote|For the homophonous moth genus, see [[Cyclidia]].}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2025}}
{{Automatic taxobox
| fossil_range = {{Temporal range|48.6|0|earliest=67|refs=<ref name=M14/><ref name="Rican2013">{{cite journal|last1=Říčan|first1=Oldřich|last2=Piálek|first2=Lubomír|last3=Zardoya|first3=Rafael|last4=Doadrio|first4=Ignacio|last5=Zrzavy|first5=Jan|date=March 2013|title=Biogeography of the Mesoamerican Cichlidae (Teleostei: Heroini): Colonization through the GAARlandia land bridge and early diversification|url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/260138359|journal=[[Journal of Biogeography]]|volume=40|issue=3|pages=579–593|doi=10.1111/jbi.12023 |bibcode=2013JBiog..40..579R |access-date=27 March 2024|url-status=live|archive-url=https://archive.today/20240321133311/https://www.researchgate.net/publication/260138359_Biogeography_of_the_Mesoamerican_Cichlidae_Teleostei_Heroini_Colonization_through_the_GAARlandia_land_bridge_and_early_diversification|archive-date=21 March 2024}}</ref>}} <small>[[Ypresian|Early Eocene]] - [[Holocene|present]]</small>
| image = Sea Life Centre, Blackpool 2016 009 - Malawi Cichlid.jpg
| image_caption = A [[mbuna]]
| display_parents = 3
| taxon = Cichlidae
| authority = [[Charles Lucien Bonaparte|Bonaparte]], 1835
| subdivision_ranks = Subfamilies and Tribes
| subdivision = Current taxonomy:
*[[Cichlinae]]
*[[Etroplinae]]
*[[Pseudocrenilabrinae]]
*[[Ptychochrominae]]
Alternate taxonomy:
*[[Cichlinae]]
**[[Astronotini]]
**[[Chaetobranchini]]
**[[Cichlasomatini]]
**[[Cichlini]]
**[[Geophagini]]
**[[Heroini]]
**[[Retroculini]]
*[[Etroplinae]]
**[[Bathybatini]]
**[[Benthochromini]]
**[[Boulengerochromini]]
**[[Chromidotilapiini]]
**[[Coelotilapiini]]
**[[Coptodonini]]
**[[Cyprichromini]]
**[[Cyphotilapiini]]
**[[Ectodini]]
**[[Eretmodini]]
**[[Etiini]]
**[[Etroplinae|Etroplini]]
**[[Gobiocichlini]]
**[[Greenwoodochromini]]
**[[Haplochromini]]
**[[Hemichromini]]
**[[Heterochromidinae|Heterochromidini]]
**[[Heterotilapiini]]
**[[Lamprologini]]
**[[Limnochromini]]
**[[Oreochromini]]
**[[Pelmatochromini]]
**[[Pelmatolapiini]]
**[[Perissodini]]
**[[Ptychochrominae|Ptychochromini]]
**[[Steatocranini]]
**[[Tilapiini]]
**[[Tropheini]]
**[[Tylochromini]]
For [[genus|genera]], see [[#Genera|below]].
}}

'''Cichlids''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|s|ɪ|k|l|ᵻ|d|z}}){{efn|
''Cichlid'' is frequently mispronounced in the pet trade as if spelled "chicklid" {{IPAc-en|ˈ|tʃ|ɪ|k|l|ᵻ|d}}, presumably from confusion with names like [[Chiclets]], and with Italian words like {{lang|it|cioppino}} and {{lang|it|ciao}} that start with ''ci-'' and the sound {{IPAc-en|tʃ}}.
}}
are a large, diverse, and widespread family of [[Percomorpha|percomorph]] [[fish]] in the [[family (biology)|family]] '''Cichlidae,''' order [[Cichliformes]]. At least 1,760&nbsp;[[species]] have been [[Binomial nomenclature|scientifically described]], making it one of the largest [[vertebrate]] families, with only the [[Cyprinidae]] being more speciose.<ref>{{Cite web |title=CAS - Eschmeyer's Catalog of Fishes - Genera/Species by Family/Subfamily |url=https://researcharchive.calacademy.org/research/ichthyology/catalog/SpeciesByFamily.asp |access-date=2025-03-12 |website=researcharchive.calacademy.org}}</ref> New species are discovered annually, and many species remain [[Undescribed taxon|undescribed]]. The actual number of species is therefore unknown, with estimates varying between 2,000 and 3,000.<ref>{{cite book |author1=Stiassny, M. |author2=Teugels, G.G.  |author3=Hopkins, C.D. |year = 2007 |title = The Fresh and Brackish Water Fishes of Lower Guinea, West-Central Africa |volume=2 |publisher=Musée Royal de l'Afrique Centrale |page=269 |isbn=978-90-74752-21-3}}</ref> They are native to the [[Neotropics]], Africa (including [[Madagascar]]), the Middle East, and the [[Indian subcontinent]], although some species have been introduced worldwide.

Many cichlids, particularly [[tilapia]], are important food fishes, while others, such as the ''[[Cichla]]'' species, are valued game fish. The family also includes many popular [[freshwater aquarium]] fish [[fishkeeping|kept]] by hobbyists, including the [[freshwater angelfish|angelfish]], [[Astronotus ocellatus|oscars]], and [[Symphysodon|discus]].<ref name="Loiselle"/><ref name="Chapman">{{Cite journal |last=Kosswig |first=Curt |date=June 1963 |title=Ways of speciation in fishes |journal=Copeia |volume=1963 |issue = 2 |pages=238–244 |jstor=1441338 |doi=10.2307/1441338}}</ref> Cichlids have the largest number of [[endangered species]] among [[vertebrate]] families, most in the [[haplochromine]] group.<ref name="Reid">{{cite journal|last = Reid |first = G.M. |date=December 1990 |title= Captive breeding for the conservation of cichlid fishes |journal = Journal of Fish Biology |volume = 37 |pages = 157–166 |doi= 10.1111/j.1095-8649.1990.tb05031.x |bibcode = 1990JFBio..37S.157R }}</ref> Cichlids are particularly well known for having [[Adaptive radiation|evolved rapidly]] into many [[Species flock|closely related but morphologically diverse species]] within large lakes, particularly Lakes [[Lake Tanganyika|Tanganyika]], [[Lake Victoria|Victoria]], [[Lake Malawi|Malawi]], and [[Lake Edward|Edward]].<ref name=Salzburger>{{cite journal |author1=Salzburger, W. |author2=Mack, T. |author3=Verheyen, E. |author4=Meyer, A. |year = 2005 |title = Out of Tanganyika: Genesis, explosive speciation, key-innovations and phylogeography of the haplochromine cichlid fishes |journal = BMC Evolutionary Biology |volume = 5 |number = 17 |page = 17 |doi = 10.1186/1471-2148-5-17 |pmid = 15723698 |pmc = 554777 |doi-access=free }}</ref><ref name=Snoeks>{{cite book |author = Snoeks, J. |year = 2004 |title = The Cichlid Diversity of Lake Malawi / Nyasa / Niassa: Identification, distribution, and taxonomy |publisher = Cichlid Press |isbn = 978-0-9668255-8-9}}</ref> Their diversity in the African Great Lakes is important for the study of [[speciation]] in evolution.<ref name = Kornfield2000>{{cite journal |author1 = Kornfield, Irv |author2 = Smith, Peter |date=November 2000 |title = African Cichlid Fishes: Model Systems for Evolutionary Biology |journal = Annual Review of Ecology and Systematics |volume = 31 |issue = 1 |pages = 163–196 |doi= 10.1146/annurev.ecolsys.31.1.163|bibcode = 2000AnRES..31..163K }}</ref> Many cichlids [[Introduced species|introduced]] into waters outside of their natural range have become nuisances.<ref>{{cite web |title=Fact sheet for ''Oreochromis mossambicus'' {{small|(Peters, 1852)}} |publisher=Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission |url=http://nis.gsmfc.org/nis_factsheet2.php?toc_id=195 |access-date=20 October 2006 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070818063320/http://nis.gsmfc.org/nis_factsheet2.php?toc_id=195 |archive-date=18 August 2007}}</ref>

All cichlids practice some form of parental care for their eggs and fry, usually in the form of guarding the eggs and fry or [[Mouthbrooder|mouthbrooding]].
{{TOC limit|3}}

==Anatomy and appearance==
Cichlids span a wide range of body sizes, from species as small as {{convert|2.5|cm|in|0|abbr=on}} in length (e.g., female ''[[Neolamprologus multifasciatus]]'') to much larger species approaching {{convert|1|m|ft|0|abbr=on}} in length (''[[Boulengerochromis]]'' and ''[[Cichla]]''). As a group, cichlids exhibit a similar diversity of body shapes, ranging from strongly laterally compressed species (such as ''[[Altolamprologus]]'', ''[[Pterophyllum]]'', and ''[[Symphysodon]]'') to species that are cylindrical and highly elongated (such as ''[[Julidochromis]]'', ''[[Teleogramma]]'', ''[[Teleocichla]]'', ''[[Crenicichla]]'', and ''[[Gobiocichla]]'').<ref name="Loiselle">{{cite book |last = Loiselle |first = P.V. |year = 1994 |title = The Cichlid Aquarium |publisher = Tetra Press |isbn = 978-1-56465-146-4}}</ref> Generally, however, cichlids tend to be of medium size, ovate in shape, and slightly laterally compressed, and generally similar to the North American [[Centrarchidae|sunfishes]] in morphology, behavior, and ecology.<ref name="Helfman">{{cite book|author1=Helfman G. |author2=Collette B. |author3=Facey D. |title = The Diversity of Fishes|publisher = Blackwell Publishing, Inc.|pages = 256–257| year = 1997| isbn= 978-0-86542-256-8}}</ref>

Cichlids share a single key trait - the fusion of the lower [[pharyngeal teeth|pharyngeal bones]] into a single tooth-bearing structure. A complex set of muscles allows the upper and lower pharyngeal bones to be used as a second set of jaws for processing food, allowing a division of labor between the [[Oral jaw|"true jaws"]] ([[mandible]]s) and the "[[pharyngeal jaws]]". Cichlids are efficient and often highly specialized feeders that capture and process a very wide variety of food items. This is assumed to be one reason why they are so diverse.<ref name="Loiselle"/>

==Taxonomy==

=== Internal taxonomy ===
The following consensus taxonomy is based on the [[Eschmeyer's Catalog of Fishes|Catalog of Fishes]] (2025)<ref name=":13">{{Cite web |last=Fricke |first=R. |last2=Eschmeyer |first2=W. N. |last3=Van der Laan |first3=R. |date=2025 |title=ESCHMEYER'S CATALOG OF FISHES: CLASSIFICATION |url=https://www.calacademy.org/eschmeyers-catalog-of-fishes-classification |access-date=2025-02-10 |website=California Academy of Sciences |language=en}}</ref>

* Family '''Cichlidae''' <small>[[Charles Lucien Bonaparte|Bonaparte]], 1835</small>
** Subfamily [[Etroplinae]] <small>Kullander</small><small>, 1998</small> (Indian and Madagascan cichlids)
** Subfamily [[Ptychochrominae]] <small>Sparks</small><small>, 2004</small> (Malagasy cichlids)
** Subfamily [[Pseudocrenilabrinae]] <small>[[Henry Weed Fowler|Fowler]]</small><small>, 1934</small> (African cichlids)
** Subfamily [[Cichlinae]] <small>Bonaparte</small><small>, 1835</small> (American cichlids)

In the past, cichlid taxonomy has varied depending on the author. [[Sven O. Kullander|Kullander]] (1998) recognized eight [[subfamily|subfamilies]] of cichlids: the [[Astronotinae]], [[Cichlasomatinae]], [[Cichlinae]], [[Etroplinae]], [[Geophaginae]], [[Heterochromidinae]], [[Pseudocrenilabrinae]], and [[Retroculinae]].<ref name="Kullander">{{cite book|last=Kullander|first=S.O.|year=1998| chapter=A phylogeny and classification of the South American Cichlidae (Teleostei: Perciformes)|pages = 461–498 |editor = L.R. Malabarba |editor2=R.E. Reis |editor3=R.P. Vari |editor4=Z.M. Lucena |editor5=C.A.S. Lucena | title=Phylogeny and classification of neotropical fishes| location= Porto Alegre |publisher = EDIPUCRS | isbn = 978-85-7430-035-1 }}</ref> A ninth subfamily, the [[Ptychochrominae]], was later recognized by Sparks and Smith.<ref name="SparksSmith">{{cite journal |author1=Sparks, J.S.  |author2=Smith, W.L. | year = 2004 | title = Phylogeny and biogeography of cichlid fishes (Teleostei: Perciformes: Cichlidae) | journal = Cladistics | volume = 20 | pages = 501–517 | doi = 10.1111/j.1096-0031.2004.00038.x | issue = 6|pmid=34892958 |citeseerx=10.1.1.595.2118 |s2cid=36086310 }}</ref> Cichlid taxonomy is still debated, and classification of [[genera]] cannot yet be definitively given. A comprehensive system of assigning [[species]] to [[monophyly|monophyletic]] genera is still lacking, and there is not complete agreement on what genera should be recognized in this family.<ref name="Nelson">{{cite book | title = Fishes of the World | last = Nelson | first = Joseph S. | publisher = John Wiley & Sons, Inc. | year = 2006 | isbn = 978-0-471-25031-9}}</ref>

As an example of the classification problems, Kullander<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www2.nrm.se/ve/pisces/acara/cichphyl.shtml |title=Phylogeny of major groups of cichlids |access-date=10 June 2007 |archive-date=18 January 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120118213155/http://www2.nrm.se/ve/pisces/acara/cichphyl.shtml |url-status=dead }}</ref> placed the African genus ''[[Heterochromis]]'' [[phylogenetic]]ally within [[Neotropical]] cichlids, although later papers{{citation needed|date=December 2019}} concluded otherwise. Other problems center upon the identity of the putative common ancestor for the Lake Victoria superflock (many closely related species sharing a single habitat), and the ancestral lineages of Lake Tanganyikan cichlids.{{citation needed|date=December 2019}}
[[File:Aequidens pallidus MH-MCZArtwork ARC 209-201.jpg|alt=A 19th century watercolor painting of a pale flag cichlid.|thumb|A 19th century watercolor painting of a pale flag cichlid by Jacques Burkhardt.|left]]
Phylogeny derived from morphological characters shows differences at the genus level with phylogeny based on [[Locus (genetics)|genetic loci]].<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Streelman |first1=J.T. |last2=Zardoya |first2=R. |last3=Meyer |first3=A. |last4=Karl |first4=S. A. |date=1 July 1998 |title=Multilocus phylogeny of cichlid fishes (Pisces: Perciformes): evolutionary comparison of microsatellite and single-copy nuclear loci. |journal=Molecular Biology and Evolution |volume=15 |issue=7 |pages=798–808 |doi=10.1093/oxfordjournals.molbev.a025985 |pmid=10766579 |doi-access=free}}</ref> A consensus remains that the Cichlidae as a family are monophyletic.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Salzburger |first1=Walter |last2=Meyer |first2=Axel |date=June 2004 |title=The species flocks of East African cichlid fishes: Recent advances in molecular phylogenetics and population genetics |journal=Naturwissenschaften |volume=91 |issue=6 |pages=277–90 |doi=10.1007/s00114-004-0528-6 |pmid=15241604 |bibcode=2004NW.....91..277S |s2cid=5816449 |url=http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bsz:352-opus-32995 }}</ref>

In cichlid taxonomy, [[dentition]] was formerly used as a classifying characteristic, but this was complicated because in many cichlids, tooth shapes change with age, due to wear, and cannot be relied upon. [[DNA sequencing|Genome sequencing]] and other technologies transformed cichlid taxonomy.

Alternatively, all cichlid species native to the [[New World]], can be classified under the subfamily Cichlinae, while Etroplinae can classify all cichlid species native to the [[Old World]].

=== External taxonomy ===
The taxonomic placement of cichlids has long been disputed and variable, and has only recently been largely resolved. In the past, based on morphological characteristics, cichlids were classed in a suborder, the [[Labroidei]], along with the wrasses ([[Labridae]]), in the order [[Perciformes]].<ref name="Stiassny">{{cite journal |author1=Stiassny, M.L.J. |author2=Jensen, J.S. |year=1987 |title=Labroid intrarelationships revisited: morphological complexity, key innovations, and the study of comparative diversity |journal=Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology |volume=151 |pages=269–319}}</ref> However, studies incorporating [[molecular phylogenetics]] have contradicted this grouping.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Wainwright |first1=Peter C. |display-authors=etal |year=2012 |title=The evolution of pharyngognathy: A phylogenetic and functional appraisal of the pharyngeal jaw key innovation in labroid fishes and beyond |journal=[[Systematic Biology]] |volume=61 |issue=6 |pages=1001–1027 |doi=10.1093/sysbio/sys060 |pmid=22744773 |doi-access=free}}</ref> 

More recent phylogenetic studies support the creation of a distinct order, the [[Cichliformes]], to contain the cichlids and their close relatives, which are no longer thought to be closely related to wrasses. The closest living relative of cichlids has been found to be the marine [[Pholidichthys leucotaenia|convict blenny]], and both families are classified in the 5th edition of ''[[Fishes of the World]]'' as the two families in the Cichliformes, part of the subseries [[Ovalentaria]].<ref name="Nelson5">{{cite book |author1=Nelson, J.S. |url=https://sites.google.com/site/fotw5th/ |title=Fishes of the World |author2=Grande, T.C. |author3=Wilson, M.V.H. |publisher=Wiley |year=2016 |isbn=978-1-118-34233-6 |edition=5th |pages=752 |access-date=5 November 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190408194051/https://sites.google.com/site/fotw5th/ |archive-date=8 April 2019 |url-status=dead}}</ref> The [[Eschmeyer's Catalog of Fishes|Catalog of Fishes]] adopts the same placement, although the [[Polycentridae|leaffishes]] (which have a similar African and South American distribution) are now also placed in the Cichliformes.<ref name=":12">{{Cite web |last1=Fricke |first1=R. |last2=Eschmeyer |first2=W. N. |last3=Van der Laan |first3=R. |date=2025 |title=ESCHMEYER'S CATALOG OF FISHES: CLASSIFICATION |url=https://www.calacademy.org/eschmeyers-catalog-of-fishes-classification |access-date=2025-02-10 |website=California Academy of Sciences |language=en}}</ref> Although these interrelationships are now generally well-supported, other authors have interpreted these relationships in differing ways, such as instead placing the cichlids, leaffish, and convict blenny as the most basal members of an expanded [[Blenniiformes]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Near |first1=Thomas J. |last2=Thacker |first2=Christine E. |date=2024-04-18 |title=Phylogenetic Classification of Living and Fossil Ray-Finned Fishes (Actinopterygii) |url=https://bioone.org/journals/bulletin-of-the-peabody-museum-of-natural-history/volume-65/issue-1/014.065.0101/Phylogenetic-Classification-of-Living-and-Fossil-Ray-Finned-Fishes-Actinopterygii/10.3374/014.065.0101.full |journal=Bulletin of the Peabody Museum of Natural History |volume=65 |issue=1 |page=101 |doi=10.3374/014.065.0101 |bibcode=2024BPMNH..65..101N |issn=0079-032X}}</ref>

=== Evolution ===
Modern cichlids have a [[disjunct distribution]] consisting of Africa (including [[Madagascar]]), the [[Neotropical realm|Neotropics]] (including [[Cuba]] and [[Hispaniola]]), the [[Levant]], southern Iran, and the southern [[Indian subcontinent]]. This distribution has become the subject of much scientific dispute, with it being debated whether modern cichlid distribution is a consequence of the breakup of [[Gondwana]] (which would make cichlids a particularly ancient group dating to the [[Early Cretaceous]]), or if it is instead based on more recent [[oceanic dispersal]] by the cichlids (despite modern members of the group being largely restricted to freshwater).<ref name=":2">{{cite journal |last1=Chakrabarty |first1=Prosanta |date=June 2004 |title=Cichlid biogeography: comment and review |journal=Fish and Fisheries |volume=5 |issue=2 |pages=97–119 |bibcode=2004AqFF....5...97C |doi=10.1111/j.1467-2979.2004.00148.x |hdl-access=free |hdl=2027.42/72313}}</ref>

Proponents of the Gondwanan theory, which saw more support in the past, have noted that the cichlids display the precise [[Sister group|sister relationships]] predicted by [[Gondwanan distribution]]: Africa-South America and India-Madagascar, and that with the exception of the species from Cuba, Hispaniola and Madagascar, cichlids have not reached any oceanic island. The dispersal hypothesis, in contrast, requires cichlids to have negotiated thousands of kilometers of open ocean between India and Madagascar without colonizing any other island, or for that matter, crossing the [[Mozambique Channel]] to Africa.<ref name=":2" />

However, more recent studies incorporating phylogenetic evidence have found that the divergences within the cichlids are far too young for cichlids to have even been present for the breakup of Gondwana. [[Molecular clock]] estimates have placed the family's origin only to the [[Maastrichtian|Late Cretaceous]] period, and the divergences within the family to have occurred anywhere between the Late Cretaceous to the [[Eocene]] (depending on the study). This suggests that only dispersal can support modern cichlid distribution. However, the factors that may have allowed prehistoric cichlids to make migrations over entire oceans remains a mystery.<ref name="Rican2013" /><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Matschiner |first=Michael |date=2019-04-01 |title=Gondwanan vicariance or trans-Atlantic dispersal of cichlid fishes: a review of the molecular evidence |url=https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10750-018-3686-9 |journal=Hydrobiologia |language=en |volume=832 |issue=1 |pages=9–37 |doi=10.1007/s10750-018-3686-9 |bibcode=2019HyBio.832....9M |issn=1573-5117|url-access=subscription }}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Matschiner |first1=Michael |last2=Böhne |first2=Astrid |last3=Ronco |first3=Fabrizia |last4=Salzburger |first4=Walter |date=2020-11-18 |title=The genomic timeline of cichlid fish diversification across continents |url=https://link.springer.com/article/10.1038/s41467-020-17827-9?fromPaywallRec=true |journal=Nature Communications |language=en |volume=11 |issue=1 |pages=5895 |doi=10.1038/s41467-020-17827-9 |bibcode=2020NatCo..11.5895M |issn=2041-1723|hdl=10852/83721 |hdl-access=free }}</ref><ref name=":3">{{Cite journal |last1=Friedman |first1=Matt |last2=Keck |first2=Benjamin P. |last3=Dornburg |first3=Alex |last4=Eytan |first4=Ron I. |last5=Martin |first5=Christopher H. |last6=Hulsey |first6=C. Darrin |last7=Wainwright |first7=Peter C. |last8=Near |first8=Thomas J. |date=2013-11-07 |title=Molecular and fossil evidence place the origin of cichlid fishes long after Gondwanan rifting |journal=Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences |volume=280 |issue=1770 |pages=20131733 |doi=10.1098/rspb.2013.1733 |pmc=3779330 |pmid=24048155}}</ref> It is known that during the [[Paleogene]], the [[Atlantic Ocean]] between South America and Africa was significantly narrower, and it has been suggested that either now-submerged islands or a large [[River plume|plume]] from the [[Congo River]] may have allowed for a shallower or less saline environment that was conducive for cichlids to disperse from Africa to South America. Under the dispersal hypothesis, it is generally accepted that Africa was the ancestral home for cichlids, from which they dispersed to attain their present distribution.<ref name=":3" />

=== Fossil record ===
[[File:Warilochromis skeleton.png|thumb|''[[Warilochromis]]'', a fossil cichlid from the [[Miocene]] of Kenya]]
The fossil record of cichlids is comprehensive, although it only starts in the [[Eocene]], well after the family is thought to have undergone significant evolutionary diversification. Fossil cichlids appear in both South America and Africa at roughly the same time in the Eocene, with fossil cichlids known from the [[Early Eocene]] (48.6&nbsp;[[Million years ago|mya]])-aged [[Lumbrera Formation]] of [[Argentina]],<ref name="M14">{{cite journal |last1=Malabarba |first1=Maria C. |last2=Malabarba |first2=Luiz R. |last3=López-Fernández |first3=Hernán |year=2014 |title=On the Eocene cichlids from the Lumbrera Formation: additions and implications for the Neotropical ichthyofauna |journal=Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology |volume=34 |issue=1 |pages=49–58 |bibcode=2014JVPal..34...49M |doi=10.1080/02724634.2013.830021}}</ref> as well as the Middle Eocene (46 mya)-aged [[Mahenge Formation]] of [[Tanzania]],<ref name=":4">{{Cite journal |last=Murray |first=Alison M. |date=2001-01-19 |title=Eocene cichlid fishes from Tanzania, East Africa |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1671/0272-4634(2000)020%5B0651:ECFFTE%5D2.0.CO;2 |journal=Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology |volume=20 |issue=4 |pages=651–664 |doi=10.1671/0272-4634(2000)020[0651:ECFFTE]2.0.CO;2 |issn=0272-4634|url-access=subscription }}</ref> suggesting that the divergence between Old and New World cichlids must have occurred prior to this point.

Several African fossil sites that contain cichlids (including the Eocene-aged Mahenge Formation of Tanzania and the Miocene-aged [[Ngorora Formation]] of Kenya)<ref name=":5">{{Cite journal |last1=Penk |first1=Stefanie B. R. |last2=Altner |first2=Melanie |last3=F. Cerwenka |first3=Alexander |last4=Schliewen |first4=Ulrich K. |last5=Reichenbacher |first5=Bettina |date=2019-07-15 |title=New fossil cichlid from the middle Miocene of East Africa revealed as oldest known member of the Oreochromini |journal=Scientific Reports |language=en |volume=9 |issue=1 |pages=10198 |doi=10.1038/s41598-019-46392-5 |pmid=31308387 |pmc=6629881 |bibcode=2019NatSR...910198P |issn=2045-2322}}</ref> appear to represent former [[Maar|maars]] or [[Rift lake|rift lakes]], and the fossil cichlids present in them appear to represent [[Species flock|species flocks]] akin to those in the modern [[Rift Valley lakes|African rift lakes]]. This suggests that rapid diversification within enclosed ecosystems is a longstanding trait of cichlids.<ref name=":4" /><ref name=":5" />

Fossil remains also suggest that cichlids ranged further north in the geologic past, with the extinct [[tilapia]] ''[[Oreochromis lorenzoi]]'' being known from the [[Late Miocene]] of Italy.<ref name=":02">{{Cite journal |last1=Carnevale |first1=Giorgio |last2=Sorbini |first2=Chiara |last3=Landini |first3=Walter |date=2003-09-12 |title=Oreochromis lorenzoi, a new species of tilapiine cichlid from the late Miocene of central Italy |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1671/1858 |journal=Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology |volume=23 |issue=3 |pages=508–516 |doi=10.1671/1858 |bibcode=2003JVPal..23..508C |issn=0272-4634|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

==Distribution and habitat==
[[File:Tilapia mariae Australia.jpg|thumb|left|210px|''[[Pelmatolapia mariae]]'', caught on a hook and line, in Australia: Originally from Africa, the species established feral populations in Australia.<ref name=Koehn>{{cite journal |last1=Koehn |first1=John D. |last2=MacKenzie |first2=Rachel F. |title=Priority management actions for alien freshwater fish species in Australia |journal=New Zealand Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research |date=August 2004 |volume=38 |issue=3 |pages=457–472 |doi=10.1080/00288330.2004.9517253 |doi-access=free |bibcode=2004NZJMF..38..457K |s2cid=83569110 }}</ref>]]

Cichlids are one of the largest vertebrate families in the world. They are most diverse in Africa and South America. Africa alone is  host to at least an estimated 1,600&nbsp;species.<ref name=Nelson/> [[Central America]] and [[Mexico]] have about 120&nbsp;species, as far north as the [[Rio Grande]] in [[South Texas]]. [[Madagascar]] has its own distinctive species (''[[Katria katria|Katria]]'', ''[[Oxylapia]]'', ''[[Paratilapia]]'', ''[[Paretroplus]]'', ''[[Ptychochromis]]'', and ''[[Ptychochromoides]]''), only distantly related to those on the African mainland.<ref name="fishbase_CS">{{FishBase family|family=Cichlidae|date=February 2012}}</ref><ref name="Boruchowitz">{{cite book|last=Boruchowitz|first=D. E.|year=2006| title=Guide to Cichlids| publisher=T.F.H. Publications| isbn=978-0-7938-0584-6}}</ref> Native cichlids are largely absent in Asia, except for 9 species in [[Israel]], [[Lebanon]], and [[Syria]] (''[[Astatotilapia flaviijosephi]]'', ''[[Oreochromis aureus]]'', ''[[Oreochromis niloticus|O. niloticus]]'', ''[[Sarotherodon galilaeus]]'', ''[[Coptodon zillii]]'', and ''[[Tristramella]]'' spp.), two in [[Iran]] (''[[Iranocichla]]''), and three in [[India]] and [[Sri Lanka]] (''[[Etroplus]]'' and ''[[Pseudetroplus]]'').<ref name="Nelson"/> If disregarding [[Trinidad and Tobago]] (where the few native cichlids are members of genera that are widespread in the South American mainland), the three species from the genus ''[[Nandopsis]]'' are the only cichlids from the [[Antilles]] in the [[Caribbean]], specifically [[Cuba]] and [[Hispaniola]]. Europe, Australia, Antarctica, and North America north of the Rio Grande drainage have no native cichlids, although in [[Florida]], [[Hawaii]], Japan, northern Australia, and elsewhere, feral populations of cichlids have become established as [[Introduced species|exotics]].<ref name="Koehn"/><ref name="abc.net.au">{{cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/farnorth/stories/s1313845.htm |title=Tilapia :: Far North Queensland |author=ABC Far North Queensland |website=[[Australian Broadcasting Corporation]] |access-date=19 April 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071017061120/http://abc.net.au/farnorth/stories/s1313845.htm |archive-date=17 October 2007 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="fishbase_convicts">{{cite web|url=http://filaman.uni-kiel.de/Summary/SpeciesSummary.php?id=3615|title=''Archocentrus nigrofasciatus'', Convict cichlid|editor=Froese, R.|editor2=D. Pauly|publisher=FishBase|access-date=29 March 2007|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081201110621/http://filaman.uni-kiel.de/Summary/SpeciesSummary.php?id=3615|archive-date=1 December 2008}}</ref><ref name="Yamamoto">{{cite book | author = Yamamoto, M.N.| author2 = Tagawa, A.W.| year = 2000| title = Hawai'i's native and exotic freshwater animals | publisher = Mutual Publishing | location = Honolulu, Hawaii | pages = 200}}</ref><ref name="Page">{{cite book | author = Page, L.M. |author2 = Burr, B.M. | year = 1991| title = A field guide to freshwater fishes of North America north of Mexico| url = https://archive.org/details/fieldguidetofres00lawr | url-access = registration | publisher = Houghton Mifflin Company | location = Boston | pages = [https://archive.org/details/fieldguidetofres00lawr/page/432 432] | isbn = 978-0-395-35307-3}}</ref><ref name="GulfStateMarine">{{cite web|author=University of Southern Mississippi/College of Marine Sciences/Gulf Coast Research Laboratory |title=Fact Sheet for Tilapia zilli (Gervais, 1848) |publisher=Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission |date=3 August 2005 |url=http://nis.gsmfc.org/nis_factsheet2.php?toc_id=200 |access-date=10 February 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070818063521/http://nis.gsmfc.org/nis_factsheet2.php?toc_id=200 |archive-date=18 August 2007}}</ref><ref name="Fuller">{{cite web | last1=Fuller | first1=Pam L. | first2=Leo G. |last2=Nico | title=Nonindigenous Fishes of Florida – With a Focus on South Florida | publisher=[[United States Geological Survey#Coastal and Marine Science Center|U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Geological Survey, Coastal and Marine Science Center]] | date=11 October 2002 | url=http://sofia.usgs.gov/sfrsf/rooms/species/invasive/focus/
|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030115221654/http://sofia.usgs.gov/sfrsf/rooms/species/invasive/focus/ |archive-date=2003-01-15 |url-status=dead}}
</ref>  Although no longer present in Europe except as introductions, tilapias are known to have ranged as far north as Italy during the [[Miocene]].<ref name=":02" />

Although most cichlids are found at relatively shallow depths, several exceptions do exist. The deepest known occurrences are ''[[Trematocara]]'' at more than {{convert|300|m|ft|-2|abbr=on}} below the surface in [[Lake Tanganyika]].<ref name=Loiselle1994>Loiselle, Paul (1994). The Cichlid Aquarium, p. 304. Tetra Press, Germany. {{ISBN|978-1564651464}}.</ref> Others found in relatively deep waters include species such as ''[[Alticorpus macrocleithrum]]'' and ''[[Pallidochromis tokolosh]]'' down to {{convert|150|m|ft|-2|abbr=on}} below the surface in Lake Malawi,<ref>{{FishBase| genus = Alticorpus | species= macrocleithrum}}</ref><ref>{{FishBase | genus = Pallidochromis | species= tokolosh }}</ref> and the whitish (non[[Biological pigment|pigmented]]) and blind ''[[Lamprologus lethops]]'', which is believed to live as deep as {{convert|160|m|ft|abbr=on}} below the surface in the [[Congo River]].<ref>Norlander, Britt (20 April 2009). [https://archive.today/20120708055831/http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1590/is_13_65/ai_n31583235/ Rough waters: one of the world's most turbulent rivers is home to a wide array of fish species. Now, large dams are threatening their future.] ''Science World''</ref> 

Cichlids are less commonly found in [[Brackish water|brackish]] and [[Seawater|saltwater]] habitats, though many species tolerate brackish water for extended periods; ''[[Mayaheros urophthalmus]]'', for example, is equally at home in freshwater [[marsh]]es and [[mangrove]] swamps, and lives and breeds in saltwater environments such as the mangrove belts around [[barrier island]]s.<ref name="Loiselle"/> Several species of ''[[Tilapia]]'', ''[[Sarotherodon]]'', and ''[[Oreochromis]]'' are [[euryhaline]] and can disperse along brackish coastlines between rivers.<ref name="Nelson"/> Only a few cichlids, however, inhabit primarily brackish or salt water, most notably ''[[Etroplus maculatus]]'', ''[[Etroplus suratensis]]'', and ''[[Sarotherodon melanotheron]]''.<ref name="Schäfer">{{cite book | author = Frank Schäfer | year = 2005 | title = Brackish-Water Fishes | publisher = Aqualog | isbn=978-3-936027-82-2}}{{page needed|date=November 2020}}</ref> The perhaps most extreme habitats for cichlids are the warm [[hypersaline lake]]s where the members of the genera ''[[Alcolapia]]'' and ''[[Danakilia]]'' are found. [[Lake Abaeded]] in [[Eritrea]] encompasses the entire distribution of ''[[Danakilia dinicolai|D. dinicolai]]'', and its temperature ranges from {{convert|29|to|45|C|F}}.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Stiassny |first1=Melanie L. J. |last2=Marchi |first2=Giuseppe De |last3=Lamboj |first3=Anton |title=A new species of Danakilia (Teleostei, Cichlidae) from Lake Abaeded in the Danakil Depression of Eritrea (East Africa) |journal=Zootaxa |date=29 November 2010 |volume=2690 |issue=1 |pages=43–52 |doi=10.11646/zootaxa.2690.1.4 |s2cid=87705274 |url=https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/51ff/077f4371672caa31f82b33e56ce59c63368b.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200212121742/https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/51ff/077f4371672caa31f82b33e56ce59c63368b.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=12 February 2020 }}</ref> Although the vast majority of Malagasy cichlids are entirely restricted to fresh water, ''[[Ptychochromis grandidieri]]'' and ''[[Paretroplus polyactis]]'' are commonly found in coastal brackish water and apparently are salt tolerant,<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Stiassny |first1=Melanie L.J |last2=Sparks |first2=John S |date=2006 |title=Phylogeny and Taxonomic Revision of the Endemic Malagasy Genus Ptychochromis (Teleostei: Cichlidae), with the Description of Five New Species and a Diagnosis for Katria, New Genus |url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/itempdf/280948 |journal=American Museum Novitates |issue=3535 |page=1 |doi=10.1206/0003-0082(2006)3535[1:PATROT]2.0.CO;2 |s2cid=322493}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Sparks |first1=John S. |date=2008 |title=Phylogeny of the Cichlid Subfamily Etroplinae and Taxonomic Revision of the Malagasy Cichlid Genus Paretroplus (Teleostei: Cichlidae) |journal=Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History |volume=314 |issue=1 |page=1 |doi=10.1206/314.1 |s2cid=84071748}}</ref> as is also the case for ''[[Orange chromide|Etroplus maculatus]]'' and ''[[Green chromide|E. suratensis]]'' from India and Sri Lanka.<ref>{{FishBase|genus=Etroplus|species=maculatus|date=July 2011}}</ref><ref>{{FishBase|genus=Etroplus|species=suratensis|date=July 2011}}</ref>

==Ecology==
{{More citations needed|date=October 2014}}

===Feeding===
Within the cichlid family, carnivores, herbivores, omnivores, planktivores, and detritivores are known, meaning the Cichlidae encompass essentially the full range of food consumption possible in the animal kingdom. Various species have morphological adaptations for specific food sources,<ref>{{cite web |last1=Kullander |first1=S.O. |title=Family Cichlidae-Cichlids |url=https://www.fishbase.se/Summary/FamilySummary.php?ID=349 |website=FishBase |access-date=4 December 2019}}</ref> but most cichlids  consume a wider variety of foods based on availability. 
Carnivorous cichlids can be further divided into piscivorous and molluscivorous, since the morphology and hunting behavior differ greatly between the two categories. Piscivorous cichlids eat other fish, fry, larvae, and eggs. Some species eat the offspring of mouthbrooders by head-ramming, wherein the hunter shoves its head into the mouth of a female to expel her young and eat them.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Jonna |first1=R. Jamil |title=Cichlidae |url=https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Cichlidae/ |website=Animal Diversity Web |publisher=University of Michigan Museum of Zoology |access-date=3 December 2019}}</ref> Molluscivorous cichlids have several hunting strategies amongst the varieties within the group. Lake Malawi cichlids consume substrate and filter it out through their gill rakers to eat the mollusks that were in the substrate. Gill rakers are finger-like structures that line the gills of some fish to catch any food that might escape through their gills.<ref>{{cite book |doi=10.1016/B978-0-12-375060-0.00003-6 |chapter=The Shark |title=The Dissection of Vertebrates |year=2011 |last1=De Iuliis |first1=Gerardo |last2=Pulerà |first2=Dino |pages=27–77 |isbn=978-0-12-375060-0 }}</ref>

[[File:Pseudotropheus Crabo Male.JPG|thumb|right|200px|The bumblebee cichlid, ''[[Pseudotropheus crabro]]'', is specialised in feeding on parasites from the catfish ''[[Bagrus meridionalis]]''.<ref name="Ribbink1982">{{cite journal |last1=Ribbink |first1=A.J. |last2=Lewis |first2=D.S.C. |title=Melanochromis Crabro Sp. Nov.: a Cichlid Fish From Lake Malawi Which Feeds On Ectoparasites and Catfish Eggs |journal=Netherlands Journal of Zoology |date=1981 |volume=32 |issue=1 |pages=72–87 |doi=10.1163/002829682X00058 }}</ref>]]
Many cichlids are primarily [[herbivores]], feeding on [[algae]] (e.g. ''[[Petrochromis]]'') and [[plants]] (e.g. ''[[Etroplus suratensis]]''). Small animals, particularly [[invertebrate]]s, are only a minor part of their diets.

Other cichlids are [[detritivore]]s and eat organic material, called ''[[Aufwuchs]]'' (offal); among these species are the [[tilapiine]]s of the genera ''[[Oreochromis]]'', ''[[Sarotherodon]]'', and ''[[Tilapia (genus)|Tilapia]]''.

Other cichlids are [[carnivore|predatory]] and eat little or no plant matter. These include generalists that catch a variety of small animals, including other fishes and [[insect]] [[larva]]e (e.g. ''[[Pterophyllum]]''), as well as variety of specialists. ''[[Trematocranus]]'' is a specialized [[snail]]-eater, while ''[[Pungu maclareni]]'' feeds on [[Porifera|sponges]]. A number of cichlids feed on other fish, either entirely or in part. ''[[Crenicichla]]'' species are stealth predators that lunge from concealment at passing small fish, while ''[[Rhamphochromis]]'' species are open-water pursuit predators that chase down their prey.<ref name = "Oliver">{{cite web| author = Oliver, M.K. | date = 18 November 1999 | url = http://malawicichlids.com/mw08096.htm | title = Rhamphochromis esox | publisher = malawicichlids.com: The Cichlid Fishes of Lake Malawi| access-date = 19 April 2007}}</ref> [[Paedophagy|Paedophagous]] cichlids such as the ''[[Caprichromis]]'' species eat other species' eggs or young, in some cases ramming the heads of mouthbrooding species to force them to disgorge their young.<ref name="Ribbink1997">{{cite journal | author = Ribbink, A.J.| author2 = Ribbink, A.C. | year = 1997 | title = Paedophagia among cichlid fishes of Lake Victoria and Lake Malawi/Nyasa | journal = South African Journal of Science | volume = 93 | pages = 509–512}}</ref><ref name="McKaye">{{cite journal|author = McKaye, K.R.| author2 = Kocher, T. | year = 1983| title = Head ramming behaviour by three paedophagous cichlids in Lake Malawi, Africa | journal = Animal Behaviour | volume = 31 | pages = 206–210 | doi = 10.1016/S0003-3472(83)80190-0| s2cid = 53156766 }}</ref><ref name = "Wilhelm">{{cite journal | author = Wilhelm, W. | year = 1980 | title = The disputed feeding behavior of a paedophagous haplochromine cichlid (Pisces) observed and discussed | journal = Behaviour | volume = 74 | pages = 310–322 | doi = 10.1163/156853980X00528 | issue = 3}}</ref><ref name="Konings">{{cite journal | author = Konings, A. | year = 2007 | title = Paedophagy in Malawi cichlids | journal = Cichlid News | volume = 16 | pages = 28–32}}</ref> Among the more unusual feeding strategies are those of ''[[Corematodus]]'', ''[[Docimodus|Docimodus evelynae]]'', ''[[Plecodus]]'', ''[[Perissodus]]'', and ''[[Genyochromis]]'' spp., which feed on scales and fins of other fishes, a behavior known as [[lepidophagy]],<ref name = "Trewavas">{{cite journal | author = Trewavas, E. | year = 1947 | title = An example of "mimicry" in fishes | journal = Nature | volume = 160| pages = 120 | doi = 10.1038/160120a0 | pmid = 20256157 | issue=4056| bibcode = 1947Natur.160..120T | s2cid = 4140785 | doi-access = free }}</ref><ref name="Eccles">{{cite journal | author = Eccles, D.H. | author2 = D.S.C. Lewis | year = 1976 | title = A taxonomic study of the genus ''Docimodus'' Boulenger (Pisces, Cichlidae) a group of fishes with unusual feeding habits from Lake Malawi | journal = Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society | volume = 58 | pages = 165–172 | doi = 10.1111/j.1096-3642.1976.tb00826.x | issue = 2}}</ref><ref name="Nshombo">{{cite journal | author = Nshombo, M. | year = 1991 | title = Occasional egg-eating by the scale-eater ''Plecodus straeleni'' (Cichlidae) of Lake Tanganyika | journal = Environmental Biology of Fishes | volume = 31 | pages = 207–212 | doi = 10.1007/BF00001022 | issue = 2| bibcode = 1991EnvBF..31..207N | s2cid = 38219021 }}</ref> along with the death-mimicking behaviour of ''[[Nimbochromis]]'' and ''[[Parachromis]]'' species, which lay motionless, luring small fish to their side prior to ambush.<ref name="Tobler">{{cite journal | author = Tobler, M. | year = 2005 | title = Feigning death in the Central American cichlid ''Parachromis friedrichsthalii'' | journal = Journal of Fish Biology | volume = 66 | pages = 877–881 | doi = 10.1111/j.0022-1112.2005.00648.x | issue = 3| bibcode = 2005JFBio..66..877T }}</ref><ref name="McKaye81">{{cite journal | author = McKaye, K.R. | year = 1981 | title = Field observation on death feigning: a unique hunting behavior by the predatory cichlid, ''Haplochromis livingstoni'', of Lake Malawi | journal = Environmental Biology of Fishes | volume = 6 | pages = 361–365 | doi = 10.1007/BF00005766 | issue = 3–4| bibcode = 1981EnvBF...6..361M | s2cid = 24244576 }}</ref>

This variety of feeding styles has helped cichlids to inhabit similarly varied habitats. Its pharyngeal teeth (in the throat) afford cichlids so many "niche" feeding strategies, because the jaws pick and hold food, while the pharyngeal teeth crush the prey.

==Behavior==

=== Aggression ===
Aggressive behavior in cichlids is ritualized and consists of multiple displays used to seek confrontation while being involved in evaluation of competitors,<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=http://news.stanford.edu/news/2007/january31/fishsr-013007.html|title=Study: Cichlids can determine their social rank by observation|last=Shwartz|first=Mark|date=25 January 2007|publisher=Stanford University|access-date=11 December 2018}}</ref> coinciding with temporal proximity to mating. Displays of [[ritualized aggression]] in cichlids include a remarkably rapid change in coloration, during which a successfully dominant<ref name=":0" /> territorial male assumes a more vivid and brighter coloration, while a subordinate or "nonterritorial" male assumes a dull-pale coloration.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Chen |first1=Chun-Chun |last2=Fernald |first2=Russell D. |title=Visual Information Alone Changes Behavior and Physiology during Social Interactions in a Cichlid Fish (Astatotilapia burtoni) |journal=PLOS ONE |date=25 May 2011 |volume=6 |issue=5 |pages=e20313 |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0020313 |pmid=21633515 |pmc=3102105 |bibcode=2011PLoSO...620313C |doi-access=free }}</ref> In addition to color displays, cichlids employ their [[lateral line]]s to sense movements of water around their opponents to evaluate the competing male for physical traits/fitness.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Knight|first=Kathryn|date=1 October 2015|title=Fighting cichlids size up opposition with lateral line|journal=Journal of Experimental Biology|volume=218|issue=20|pages=3161|doi=10.1242/jeb.132563 |doi-access=free|bibcode=2015JExpB.218R3161K }}</ref> Male cichlids are very territorial due to the pressure of reproduction, and establish their territory and [[social status]] by physically driving out<ref name=":1">{{Cite journal|last=Fernald|first=Russell D.|date=1 January 2017|title=Cognitive skills and the evolution of social systems|journal=Journal of Experimental Biology|volume=220|issue=1|pages=103–113|doi=10.1242/jeb.142430 |pmid=28057833|pmc=5278620|bibcode=2017JExpB.220..103F }}</ref> challenging males (novel intruders)<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Fernald|first1=Russell D.|last2=Kent|first2=Kai R.|last3=Hilliard|first3=Austin T.|last4=Becker|first4=Lisa|last5=Alcazar|first5=Rosa M.|date=15 August 2016|title=Two types of dominant male cichlid fish: behavioral and hormonal characteristics|journal=Biology Open|volume=5|issue=8|pages=1061–1071|doi=10.1242/bio.017640 |pmid=27432479|pmc=5004607}}</ref> through lateral displays (parallel orientation, uncovering gills),<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Arnott|first1=Gareth|last2=Ashton|first2=Charlotte|last3=Elwood|first3=Robert W.|date=23 October 2011|title=Lateralization of lateral displays in convict cichlids|journal=Biology Letters|volume=7|issue=5|pages=683–685|doi=10.1098/rsbl.2011.0328 |pmc=3169077|pmid=21508024}}</ref> biting, or mouth fights (head-on collisions of open mouths, measuring jaw sizes, and biting each other's jaws). The cichlid social [[dichotomy]] is composed of a single dominant with multiple subordinates, where the physical aggression of males becomes a contest for resources<ref name=":1" /> (mates, territory, food). Female cichlids prefer to mate with a successfully [[Alpha (ethology)|alpha]] male with vivid coloration, whose territory has food readily available.

===Mating===
Cichlids mate either [[Monogamy in animals|monogamously]] or [[Animal sexual behaviour#Polygamy|polygamously]].<ref name="Loiselle" /> The mating system of a given cichlid species is not consistently associated with its brooding system. For example, although most monogamous cichlids are not mouthbrooders, ''[[Chromidotilapia]]'', ''[[Gymnogeophagus]]'', ''[[Spathodus]]'', and ''[[Tanganicodus]]'' all include – or consist entirely of – monogamous mouthbrooders. In contrast, numerous open- or cave-spawning cichlids are polygamous; examples include many ''[[Apistogramma]]'', ''[[Lamprologus]]'', ''[[Nannacara]]'', and ''[[Pelvicachromis]]'' species.<ref name="Loiselle" /><ref name="martin">{{cite journal|author=Martin, E.|author2=M. Taborsky|year=1997|title=Alternative male mating acttics in a cichlid, ''Pelvicachromis pulcher'': a comparison of reproductive effort and success|journal=Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology|volume=41|issue=5|pages=311–319|doi=10.1007/s002650050391|bibcode=1997BEcoS..41..311M |s2cid=27852520}}</ref>

Most adult male cichlids, specifically in the cichlid tribe Haplochromini, exhibit a unique pattern of oval-shaped color dots on their anal fins. These phenomena, known as egg spots, aid in the mouthbrooding mechanisms of cichlids. The egg spots consist of carotenoid-based pigment cells, which indicate a high cost to the organism, when considering that fish are not able to synthesize their own carotenoids.<ref name=pmid22028784>{{cite journal |last1=Egger |first1=Bernd |last2=Klaefiger |first2=Yuri |last3=Theis |first3=Anya |last4=Salzburger |first4=Walter |date=18 October 2011 |title=A sensory bias has triggered the evolution of egg-spots in cichlid fishes |journal=PLOS ONE |volume=6 |issue=10 |page=e25601 |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0025601 |doi-access=free |pmid=22028784 |pmc=3196499 |bibcode=2011PLoSO...625601E}}</ref>

The mimicry of egg spots is used by males for the fertilization process. Mouthbrooding females lay eggs and immediately snatch them up with their mouths. Over millions of years, male cichlids have evolved egg spots to initiate the fertilization process more efficiently.<ref name=pmid25296686>{{cite journal |last1=Santos |first1=M. Emília |last2=Braasch |first2=Ingo |last3=Boileau |first3=Nicolas |last4=Meyer |first4=Britta S. |last5=Sauteur |first5=Loïc |last6=Böhne |first6=Astrid |last7=Belting |first7=Heinz-Georg |last8=Affolter |first8=Markus |last9=Salzburger |first9=Walter |display-authors=6 |date=9 October 2014 |title=The evolution of cichlid fish egg-spots is linked with a cis-regulatory change |journal=Nature Communications |volume=5 |page=5149 |doi=10.1038/ncomms6149 |pmid=25296686 |pmc=4208096 |bibcode=2014NatCo...5.5149S}}</ref> When the females are snatching up the eggs into their mouth, the males gyrate their anal fins, which illuminates the egg spots on his tail. Afterwards, the female, believing these are her eggs, places her mouth to the anal fin (specifically the genital papilla) of the male, which is when he discharges sperm into her mouth and fertilizes the eggs.<ref name=pmid22028784/>

The genuine color of egg spots is a yellow, red, or orange inner circle with a colorless ring surrounding the shape. Through phylogenetic analysis, using the mitochondrial ''ND2'' gene, the true egg spots are thought to have evolved in the common ancestor of the ''Astatoreochromis'' lineage and the modern ''Haplochrominis'' species. This ancestor was most likely riverine in origin, based on the most parsimonious representation of habitat type in the cichlid family.<ref name=pmid15723698>{{cite journal |last1=Salzburger |first1=Walter |last2=Mack |first2=Tanja |last3=Verheyen |first3=Erik |last4=Meyer |first4=Axel |date=1 January 2005 |title=Out of Tanganyika: Genesis, explosive speciation, key-innovations and phylogeography of the haplochromine cichlid fishes |journal=BMC Evolutionary Biology |volume=5 |pages=17 |doi=10.1186/1471-2148-5-17 |pmc=554777 |pmid=15723698 |doi-access=free }}</ref> The presence of egg spots in a turbid riverine environment would seem particularly beneficial and necessary for intraspecies communication.<ref name=pmid15723698/>

Two pigmentation genes are found to be associated with egg-spot patterning and color arrangement. These are ''fhl2-a'' and ''fhl2-b'', which are paralogs.<ref name=pmid25296686/> These genes aid in pattern formation and cell-fate determination in early embryonic development. The highest expression of these genes was temporally correlated with egg-spot formation. A short, interspersed, repetitive element was also seen to be associated with egg spots. Specifically, it was evident upstream of the transcriptional start site of ''fhl2'' in only ''Haplochrominis'' species with egg spots<ref name=pmid25296686/>

===Self-fertilization===
The cichlid ''[[Benitochromis]] nigrodorsalis'' from Western Africa ordinarily undergoes biparental reproduction, but is also able to undergo [[Parthenogenesis|facultative]] (optional) selfing ([[autogamy|self-fertilization]]).<ref name = Böhne2023>Böhne A, Oğuzhan Z, Chrysostomakis I, Vitt S, Meuthen D, Martin S, Kukowka S, Thünken T. Evidence for selfing in a vertebrate from whole-genome sequencing. Genome Res. 2023 Dec 27;33(12):2133-2142. doi: 10.1101/gr.277368.122. PMID 38190641; PMCID: PMC10760518</ref>  Facultative selfing may be an adaptive option when a mating partner is unavailable.<ref name = Böhne2023/>

===Brood care===
{{Further|List of fish species that protect their young}}

====Pit spawning in cichlids====
Pit spawning, also referred to as substrate breeding, is a behavior in cichlid fish in which a fish builds a pit in the sand or ground, where a pair court and consequently spawn.<ref name=Alonso-2011>{{cite journal |last1=Alonso |first1=Felipe |last2=Cánepa |first2=Maximiliano |last3=Moreira |first3=Renata Guimarães |last4=Pandolfi |first4=Matías |date=22 July 2011 |title=Social and reproductive physiology and behavior of the Neotropical cichlid fish Cichlasoma dimerus under laboratory conditions |journal=Neotropical Ichthyology |volume=9 |issue=3 |pages=559–570 |doi=10.1590/S1679-62252011005000025 |doi-access=free |hdl=20.500.12110/paper_16796225_v9_n3_p559_Alonso |hdl-access=free }}</ref> Many different factors go into this behavior of pit spawning, including female choice of the male and pit size, as well as the male defense of the pits once they are dug in the sand.<ref name=Nelson-1995>{{cite journal |last=Nelson |first=C. Mindy |date=1 January 1995 |title=Male size, spawning pit size and female mate choice in a lekking cichlid fish |journal=Animal Behaviour |volume=50 |issue=6 |pages=1587–1599 |doi=10.1016/0003-3472(95)80013-1 |s2cid=54249065 |doi-access=free }}</ref>

Cichlids are often divided into two main groups: mouthbrooders and substrate brooders. Different parenting investment levels and behaviors are associated with each type of reproduction.<ref name=Duponchelle-2008>{{cite journal |last1=Duponchelle |first1=Fabrice |last2=Paradis |first2=Emmanuel |last3=Ribbink |first3=Anthony J. |last4=Turner |first4=George F. |title=Parallel life history evolution in mouthbrooding cichlids from the African Great Lakes |journal=Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences |date=7 October 2008 |volume=105 |issue=40 |pages=15475–15480 |doi=10.1073/pnas.0802343105 |pmid=18824688 |pmc=2563094 |bibcode=2008PNAS..10515475D |doi-access=free }}</ref> As pit spawning is a reproductive behavior, many different physiological changes occur in the cichlid while this process is occurring that interfere with social interaction.<ref name=Brown-1978>{{cite journal |last1=Brown |first1=Dean H. |last2=Marshall |first2=Joseph A. |title=Reproductive Behaviour of the Rainbow Cichlid, Herotilapia Multispinosa (Pisces, Cichlidae) |journal=Behaviour |date=1978 |volume=67 |issue=3–4 |pages=299–321 |doi=10.1163/156853978X00378 }}</ref> Different kinds of species that pit spawn, and many different morphological changes  occur because of this behavioral experience.<ref name=Alonso-2011/>

Pit spawning is an evolved behavior across the cichlid group. Phylogenetic evidence from cichlids in Lake Tanganyika could be helpful in uncovering the evolution of their reproductive behaviors.<ref name=Muschik-2012>{{cite journal |last1=Muschick |first1=Moritz |last2=Indermaur |first2=Adrian |last3=Salzburger |first3=Walter |title=Convergent Evolution within an Adaptive Radiation of Cichlid Fishes |journal=Current Biology |date=December 2012 |volume=22 |issue=24 |pages=2362–2368 |doi=10.1016/j.cub.2012.10.048 |pmid=23159601 |s2cid=18363916 |doi-access=free |bibcode=2012CBio...22.2362M }}</ref> Several important behaviors are associated with pit spawning, including parental care, food provisioning,<ref name=Wisenden-1995>{{cite journal |last1=Wisenden |first1=Brian D. |last2=Lanfranconi-Izawa |first2=Tanya L. |last3=Keenleyside |first3=Miles H.A. |title=Fin digging and leaf lifting by the convict cichlid, Cichlasoma nigrofasciatum: examples of parental food provisioning |journal=Animal Behaviour |date=March 1995 |volume=49 |issue=3 |pages=623–631 |doi=10.1016/0003-3472(95)80195-2 |s2cid=41529998 }}</ref> and brood guarding.<ref name=Ota-2014>{{cite journal |last1=Ota |first1=Kazutaka |last2=Kohda |first2=Masanori |title=Maternal Food Provisioning in a Substrate-Brooding African Cichlid |journal=PLOS ONE |date=9 June 2014 |volume=9 |issue=6 |pages=e99094 |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0099094 |pmid=24911060 |pmc=4049616 |bibcode=2014PLoSO...999094O |doi-access=free }}</ref>

====Mouth brooding vs. pit spawning====
One of the differences studied in African cichlids is reproductive behavior. Some species pit spawn and some are known as mouth brooders. Mouthbrooding is a reproductive technique where the fish scoop up eggs and fry for protection.<ref name=Duponchelle-2008/> While this behavior differs from species to species in the details, the general basis of the behavior is the same. Mouthbrooding also affects how they choose their mates and breeding grounds. In a 1995 study, Nelson found that in pit-spawning females choose males for mating based on the size of the pit that they dig, as well as some of the physical characteristics seen in the males.<ref name=Nelson-1995/> Pit spawning also differs from mouth brooding in the size and postnatal care  exhibited. Eggs that have been hatched from pit-spawning cichlids are usually smaller than those of mouthbrooders. Pit-spawners' eggs are usually around 2&nbsp;mm, while mouthbrooders are typically around 7&nbsp;mm. While different behaviors take place postnatally between mouthbrooders and pit spawners,  some similarities exist. Females in  both mouthbrooders and pit-spawning cichlids take care of their young after they are hatched. In some cases, both parents exhibit care, but the female always cares for the eggs and newly hatched fry.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Sefc |first1=Kristina M. |date=21 July 2011 |title=Mating and parental care in Lake Tanganyika's cichlids |journal=International Journal of Evolutionary Biology |volume=2011 |page=470875 |doi=10.4061/2011/470875 |pmid=21822482 |pmc=3142683 |doi-access=free }}</ref>

====Pit spawning process====

Many species of cichlids use pit spawning, but one of the less commonly studied species that exhibits this behavior is the Neotropical ''Cichlasoma dimerus''. This fish is a substrate breeder that displays biparental care after the fry have hatched from their eggs. One study<ref name=Alonso-2011/> examined reproductive and social behaviors  of this species to see how they accomplished their pit spawning, including different physiological factors such as hormone levels, color changes, and plasma cortisol levels. The entire spawning process could take about 90&nbsp;minutes and 400~800&nbsp;eggs could be laid. The female deposits about 10&nbsp;eggs at a time, attaching them to the spawning surface, which may be a pit constructed on the substrate or another surface. The number of eggs laid was correlated to the space available on the substrate. Once the eggs were attached, the male swam over the eggs and fertilized them. The parents would then dig pits in the sand, 10–20&nbsp;cm wide and 5–10&nbsp;cm deep, where larvae were transferred after hatching. Larvae began swimming 8 days after fertilization and parenting behaviors and some of the physiological factors measured changed.

====Color changes====
In the same study, color changes were present before and after the pit spawning occurred. For example, after the larvae were transferred and the pits were beginning to be protected, their fins turned a dark grey color.<ref name=Alonso-2011/> In another study, of the rainbow cichlid, ''Herotilapia multispinosa'',<ref name=Brown-1978/> color changes occurred throughout the spawning process. Before spawning, the rainbow cichlid was an olive color with grey bands. Once spawning behaviors started, the body and fins of the fish became a more golden color. When the eggs were finished being laid, the pelvic fin all the way back to the caudal fin turned to a darker color and blackened in both the males and the females.<ref name=Brown-1978/>

====Pit sizes====
Females prefer a bigger pit size when choosing where to lay eggs.<ref name=Nelson-1995/> Differences are seen in the sizes of pits that created, as well as a change in the morphology of the pits.<ref name=York-2015>{{cite journal |last1=York |first1=Ryan A. |last2=Patil |first2=Chinar |last3=Hulsey |first3=C. Darrin |last4=Streelman |first4=J. Todd |last5=Fernald |first5=Russell D. |title=Evolution of bower building in Lake Malawi cichlid fish: phylogeny, morphology, and behavior |journal=Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution |date=27 February 2015 |volume=3 |doi=10.3389/fevo.2015.00018 |s2cid=7458974 |doi-access=free }}</ref> Evolutionary differences between species of fish may cause them to either create pits or castles when spawning. The differences were changes in the way that each species fed, their macrohabitats, and the abilities of their sensory systems.<ref name=York-2015/>

====Evolution====
Cichlids are renowned for their recent, rapid evolutionary radiation, both across the entire clade and within different communities across separate habitats.<ref name=Duponchelle-2008/><ref name=Muschik-2012/><ref name=York-2015/><ref name=Zardoya-1996/><ref name=Goodwin-1998>{{cite journal |last1=Goodwin |first1=Nicholas B. |last2=Balshine-Earn |first2=Sigal |last3=Reynolds |first3=John D. |title=Evolutionary transitions in parental care in cichlid fish |journal=Proceedings of the Royal Society of London. Series B: Biological Sciences |date=7 December 1998 |volume=265 |issue=1412 |pages=2265–2272 |doi=10.1098/rspb.1998.0569 |pmc=1689529 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Hulsey |first1=C Darrin |last2=Hollingsworth |first2=Phillip R |last3=Fordyce |first3=James A |title=Temporal diversification of Central American cichlids |journal=BMC Evolutionary Biology |date=December 2010 |volume=10 |issue=1 |pages=279 |doi=10.1186/1471-2148-10-279 |pmid=20840768 |pmc=2944184 |doi-access=free |bibcode=2010BMCEE..10..279H }}</ref> Within their phylogeny, many parallel instances are seen of lineages evolving to the same trait and multiple cases of reversion to an ancestral trait.

The family Cichlidae arose between 80 and 100 million years ago within the order Perciformes (perch-like fishes).<ref name=Zardoya-1996>{{cite journal |last1=Zardoya |first1=Rafael |last2=Vollmer |first2=Dana M. |last3=Craddock |first3=Clark |last4=Streelman |first4=Jeffrey T. |last5=Karl |first5=Steve |last6=Meyer |first6=Axel |date=22 November 1996 |title=Evolutionary conservation of microsatellite flanking regions and their use in resolving the phylogeny of cichlid fishes (Pisces: Perciformes) |journal=Proceedings of the Royal Society of London |series=Series B: Biological Sciences |volume=263 |issue=1376 |pages=1589–1598 |doi=10.1098/rspb.1996.0233 |pmid=8952095 |bibcode=1996RSPSB.263.1589Z |s2cid=45834758 |url=http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bsz:352-opus-36277 }}</ref> Cichlidae can be split into a few groups based on their geographic location: Madagascar, Indian, African, and Neotropical (or South American). The most famous and diverse group, the African cichlids, can be further split either into Eastern and Western varieties, or into groups depending on which lake the species is from: [[Lake Malawi]], [[Lake Victoria]], or [[Lake Tanganyika]].<ref name=Zardoya-1996/><ref name=Goodwin-1998/> Of these subgroups, the Madagascar and Indian cichlids are the most basal and least diverse.{{citation needed|date=November 2020}}

Of the African cichlids, the West African or Lake Tanganyika cichlids are the most basal.<ref name=Muschik-2012/><ref name=Zardoya-1996/>
Cichlids' common ancestor is believed to have been a spit-spawning species.<ref name=Goodwin-1998/> Both Madagascar and Indian cichlids retain this feature. However, of the African cichlids, all extant substrate brooding species originate solely from Lake Tanganyika.<ref name=Duponchelle-2008/><ref name=Goodwin-1998/> The ancestor of the Lake Malawi and Lake Victoria cichlids were mouthbrooders. Similarly, only around 30% of South American cichlids are thought to retain the ancestral substrate-brooding trait. Mouthbrooding is thought to have evolved individually up to 14 times, and a return to substrate brooding as many as three separate times between both African and Neotropical species.<ref name=Goodwin-1998/>

====Associated behaviors====
Cichlids have a great variety of behaviors associated with substrate brooding, including courtship and parental care alongside the brooding and nest-building behaviors needed for pit spawning. Cichlids' behavior typically revolves around establishing and defending territories when not courting, brooding, or raising young. Encounters between males and males or females and females  are agonistic, while an encounter between a male and female leads to courtship.<ref name=Burchard-1964>{{cite journal |last1=Burchard |first1=John E. |title=Family Structure in the Dwarf Cichlid Apistogramma trifasciatum Eigenmann and Kennedy) |journal=Zeitschrift für Tierpsychologie |date=26 April 2010 |volume=22 |issue=2 |pages=150–162 |doi=10.1111/j.1439-0310.1965.tb01428.x |pmid=5890861 }}</ref> Courtship in male cichlids follows the establishment of some form of territory, sometimes coupled with building a bower to attract mates.<ref name=Nelson-1995/><ref name=York-2015/><ref name=Burchard-1964/> After this, males may attempt to attract female cichlids to their territories by a variety of lekking display strategies or otherwise seek out females of their species.<ref name=Nelson-1995/> However, cichlids, at the time of spawning, undergo a behavioral change such that they become less receptive to outside interactions.<ref name=Burchard-1964/> This is often coupled with some physiological change in appearance.<ref name=Alonso-2011/><ref name=Brown-1978/><ref name=Burchard-1964/>

====Brood care====
Cichlids can have maternal, paternal, or biparental care. Maternal care is most common among mouthbrooders, but cichlids' common ancestor is thought to exhibit paternal-only care.<ref name=Goodwin-1998/> Other individuals outside of the parents may also play a role in raising young; in the biparental daffodil cichlid (''Neolamprologus pulcher''), closely related satellite males, those males that surround other males' territories and attempt to mate with female cichlids in the area, help rear the primary males' offspring and their own.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Dierkes |first1=P. |title=Reproductive parasitism of broodcare helpers in a cooperatively breeding fish |journal=Behavioral Ecology |date=1 September 1999 |volume=10 |issue=5 |pages=510–515 |doi=10.1093/beheco/10.5.510 |doi-access=free }}</ref>

A common form of brood care involves food provisioning. For example, females of lyretail cichlids (''Neolamprologus modabu'') dig at sandy substrate more to push nutritional detritus and zooplankton into the surrounding water. Adult of '' N. modabu'' perform this strategy to collect food for themselves, but dig more when offspring are present, likely to feed their fry.<ref name=Ota-2014/><ref name=Zworykin-2001>{{cite book |last1=Zworykin |first1=Dmitry |chapter=Parental brood provisioning in cichlid fishes by means of stirring up of the loose material of bottom substrate: a brief review |date=2001 |doi=10.13140/2.1.1937.5048 |title=Cichlid Research: State of the Art |pages=269–286 }}</ref> This substrate-disruption strategy is rather common and can also be seen in convict cichlids (''Cichlasoma nigrofasciatum'').<ref name=Wisenden-1995/><ref name=Zworykin-2001/> Other cichlids have an ectothermal mucus that they grow and feed to their young, while still others chew and distribute caught food to offspring. These strategies, however, are less common in pit-spawning cichlids.<ref name=Zworykin-2001/>

[[File:Managuense with eggs.jpg|thumb|210px|A substrate brooding female managuense cichlid, ''[[Parachromis managuense]]'', guards a clutch of eggs in the aquarium.|alt=]]
Cichlids have highly organized breeding activities.<ref name=Nelson/> All species show some form of parental care for both [[Egg (biology)|egg]]s and [[larva]]e, often nurturing free-swimming young until they are weeks or months old.
Communal parental care, where multiple monogamous pairs care for a mixed school of young have also been observed in multiple cichlid species, including ''[[Amphilophus citrinellus]]'', ''[[Etroplus suratensis]]'', and ''[[Tilapia rendalli]]''.<ref name=McKaye77>{{cite journal |author= McKaye, K.R.|author2 = N.M. McKaye | year = 1977 | title = Communal Care and Kidnapping of Young by Parental Cichlids| journal = Evolution | volume = 31 | pages = 674–681 | doi = 10.2307/2407533 |pmid = 28563477 |issue= 3 |jstor= 2407533}}</ref><ref name="Ward77">{{cite journal | author = Ward, J.A. |author2 = Wyman, R.L. |year = 1977| title= Ethology and ecology of cichlid fishes of the genus ''Etroplus'' in Sri Lanka: Preliminary findings | journal = Environmental Biology of Fishes | volume = 2 | issue = 2 | pages = 137–145 | doi = 10.1007/BF00005369 |bibcode = 1977EnvBF...2..137W |s2cid = 8307811 }}</ref><ref name="Ribbink81">{{cite journal | author = Ribbink, A.J. |author2 = Marsh, A.C. |author3 = Marsh, B.A. | year = 1981 | title = Nest-building and communal care of young by ''Tilapia rendalli dumeril'' (pisces, cichlidae) in Lake Malawi | journal = Environmental Biology of Fishes | volume = 6 | pages = 219–222 | doi = 10.1007/BF00002787 | issue = 2|bibcode = 1981EnvBF...6..219R | s2cid = 9546191 }}</ref> Comparably, the fry of ''[[Neolamprologus brichardi]]'', a species that commonly lives in large groups, are protected not only by the adults, but also by older [[Juvenile (organism)|juveniles]] from previous spawns.<ref>Steeves, Greg. [http://www.africancichlids.net/articles/neolamprologus_brichardi/ Neolamprologus brichardi.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080505172935/http://www.africancichlids.net/articles/neolamprologus_brichardi/ |date=5 May 2008 }} africancichlids.net. Retrieved 8 April 2008</ref> Several cichlids, including discus (''[[Symphysodon]]'' spp.), some ''[[Amphilophus]]'' species, ''[[Etroplus]]'', and ''[[Uaru]]'' species, feed their young with a skin [[secretion]] from mucous glands.<ref name=Loiselle/><ref name=baensch/>

The species ''[[Neolamprologus pulcher]]'' uses a cooperative breeding system, in which one breeding pair has many helpers that are subordinate to the dominant breeders.

Parental care falls into one of four categories:<ref name=baensch/> substrate or open brooders, secretive cave brooders (also known as guarding speleophils<ref name=Balon>{{cite journal |author=Balon, E.K. |year=1975 |title=Reproductive guilds of fishes: A proposal and definition |journal=Journal of the Fisheries Research Board of Canada |volume=32 |issue=6 |pages=821–864 |doi=10.1139/f75-110 }}</ref>), and at least two types of [[mouthbrooder]]s, ovophile mouthbrooders and larvophile mouthbrooders.<ref name="Keenleyside">{{cite book |last=Keenleyside |first=M.H.A. |year=1991 |chapter=Parental care |title=Cichlid Fishes: Behaviour, ecology and evolution |publisher=Chapman and Hall |place=London, UK |pages=191–208 |isbn=978-0-412-32200-6}}</ref>

====Open brooding====
Open- or substrate-brooding cichlids lay their eggs in the open, on rocks, leaves, or logs. Examples of open-brooding cichlids include ''[[Pterophyllum]]'' and ''Symphysodon'' species and ''[[Anomalochromis thomasi]]''. Male and female parents usually engage in differing brooding roles. Most commonly, the male patrols the pair's territory and repels intruders, while the female fans water over the eggs, removing the infertile ones, and leading the fry while foraging. Both sexes are able to perform the full range of parenting behaviours.<ref name="Keenleyside"/>

====Cave brooding====
[[File:Cyphotilapia frontosa mouthbrooding.jpg|thumb|right|180px|A female ''[[Cyphotilapia frontosa]]'' mouthbrooding fry, which can be seen looking out of her mouth]]
Secretive cave-spawning cichlids lay their eggs in caves, crevices, holes, or [[Shell dweller|discarded mollusc shells]], frequently attaching the eggs to the roof of the chamber. Examples include ''[[Pelvicachromis pulcher|Pelvicachromis]]'' spp., ''[[Convict cichlid|Archocentrus]]'' spp., and ''[[Apistogramma]]'' spp.<ref name=baensch/> Free-swimming fry and parents communicate in captivity and in the wild. Frequently, this communication is based on body movements, such as shaking and [[pelvic fin]] flicking. In addition, open- and cave-brooding parents assist in finding food resources for their fry. Multiple neotropical cichlid species perform leaf-turning and fin-digging behaviors.<ref name="Keenleyside"/>

====Ovophile mouthbrooding====
Ovophile mouthbrooders incubate their eggs in their mouths as soon as they are laid, and frequently mouthbrood free-swimming fry for several weeks. Examples include many [[East African Rift]] lakes ([[Lake Malawi National Park|Lake Malawi]], [[Lake Tanganyika]], and [[Lake Victoria]]) endemics, e.g.: ''[[Maylandia]]'', ''[[Pseudotropheus]]'', ''[[Tropheus]]'', and ''[[Astatotilapia burtoni]]'', along with some [[South America]]n cichlids such as ''[[Geophagus steindachneri]]''.

====Larvophile mouthbrooding====
Larvophile mouthbrooders lay eggs in the open or in a cave and take the hatched larvae into the mouth. Examples include some variants of ''[[Geophagus altifrons]]'', and some ''[[Aequidens]]'', ''[[Gymnogeophagus]]'', and ''[[Satanoperca]]'', as well as ''[[Oreochromis mossambicus]]'' and ''[[Oreochromis niloticus]]''.<ref name=Loiselle/><ref name=baensch/> Mouthbrooders, whether of eggs or larvae, are predominantly females. Exceptions that also involve the males include eretmodine cichlids (genera ''[[Spathodus]]'', ''[[Eretmodus]]'', and ''[[Tanganicodus]]''), some ''[[Sarotherodon]]'' species (such as ''[[Sarotherodon melanotheron]]''<ref name=Kishida00>{{cite journal |last1=Kishida |first1=Mitsuyo |last2=Specker |first2=Jennifer L. |date=February 2000 |title=Paternal mouthbrooding in the black-chinned tilapia, ''Sarotherodon melanotheron'' (Pisces: Cichlidae): Changes in gonadal steroids and potential for vitellogenin transfer to larvae |journal=Hormones and Behavior |volume=37 |issue=1 |pages=40–48 |doi=10.1006/hbeh.1999.1556 |pmid=10712857 |s2cid=8128737 }}</ref>), ''[[Chromidotilapia guentheri]]'', and some ''[[Aequidens]]'' species.<ref name="Loiselle"/><ref name=Keenleyside/><ref name=Coleman99>{{cite journal | author = Coleman, R. |date=January 1999 | title = Mysterious mouthbrooders | journal = Cichlid News  | pages = 32–33}}</ref> This method appears to have evolved independently in several groups of African cichlids.<ref name="Nelson"/>

==Speciation==
[[File:ChiclidPhylogeny4TC.jpg|thumb|400px|Cichlids of the [[Rift Valley lakes|African rift lake system]] evolved from an original [[hybrid swarm]].<ref name=Meier/>]]
Cichlids provide scientists with a unique perspective of speciation, having become extremely diverse in the recent geological past, those of Lake Victoria actually within the last 10,000 to 15,000&nbsp;years, a small fraction of the millions taken for Galápagos finch speciation in Darwin's textbook case.<ref>{{cite magazine |first=Axel |last=Meyer |date=April 2015 |title=The extraordinary evolution of cichlid fishes |magazine=[[Scientific American]] |url=https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-extraordinary-evolution-of-cichlid-fishes/ |access-date=29 April 2023}}</ref> Some of the contributing factors to their diversification are believed to be the various forms of prey processing displayed by cichlid [[pharyngeal jaw]] apparatuses. These different jaw apparatuses allow for a broad range of feeding strategies, including algae scraping, snail crushing, planktivory, piscivory, and insectivory.<ref>{{cite journal |last1 = Albertson |first1 = R.C. |last2 = Markert |first2 = J.A. |last3 = Danley |first3 = P.D. |last4 = Kocher |first4 = T.D. |year = 1999 |title = Phylogeny of a rapidly evolving clade: The cichlid fishes of Lake Malawi, East Africa |journal = PNAS |volume = 96 |issue = 9 |pages = 5107–5110 |doi=10.1073/pnas.96.9.5107| pmid = 10220426 |pmc = 21824 | bibcode = 1999PNAS...96.5107A |doi-access = free }}</ref> Some cichlids can also show [[phenotypic plasticity]] in their pharyngeal jaws, which can also help lead to speciation. In response to different diets or food scarcity, members of the same species can display different jaw morphologies that are better suited to different feeding strategies. As species members begin to concentrate around different food sources and continue their lifecycle, they most likely spawn with like individuals. This can reinforce the jaw morphology and given enough time, create new species.<ref>{{cite journal |last1 = Muschick |first1 = M. |last2 = Barluenga |first2 = M. |last3 = Salzburger |first3 = W. |last4 = Meyer |first4 = A. |year = 2011 |title = Adaptive phenotypic plasticity in the Midas cichlid fish pharyngeal jaw and its relevance in adaptive radiation |journal = BMC Evolutionary Biology |volume = 11 |issue = 1 |page = 116 |doi=10.1186/1471-2148-11-116 |pmid=21529367 |pmc=3103464 |doi-access = free |bibcode = 2011BMCEE..11..116M }}</ref> Such a process can happen through [[allopatric speciation]], whereby species diverge according to different selection pressures in different geographical areas, or through [[sympatric speciation]], by which new species evolve from a common ancestor while remaining in the same area. In [[Apoyo Lagoon Natural Reserve|Lake Apoyo]] in [[Nicaragua]], ''[[Amphilophus zaliosus]]'' and its sister species ''[[Amphilophus citrinellus]]'' display many of the criteria needed for sympatric speciation.<ref>{{cite journal |last1 = Barluenga |first1 = M. |last2 = Meyer |first2 = A. |last3 = Muschick |first3 = M. |last4 = Salzburger |first4 = W. |last5 = Stolting |first5 = K.N. |year = 2006 |title = Sympatric speciation in Nicaraguan crater lake cichlid fish |journal = Nature |volume = 439 |issue = 7077 |pages = 719–23 |doi=10.1038/nature04325 |pmid=16467837 |bibcode = 2006Natur.439..719B |s2cid = 3165729 |url = https://kops.uni-konstanz.de/bitstream/123456789/6577/1/sympatric_speciation_in_nicaraguan_crater_lake_cichlid_fish_2006.pdf }}</ref> In the [[Rift Valley lakes|African rift lake system]], cichlid species in numerous distinct lakes evolved from a shared [[hybrid swarm]].<ref name=Meier>{{cite journal |title=Ancient hybridization fuels rapid cichlid fish adaptive radiations |first1=Joana I. |last1=Meier |first2=David A. |last2=Marques |first3=Salome |last3=Mwaiko |first4=Catherine E. |last4=Wagner |first5=Laurent |last5=Excoffier|first6=Ole |last6=Seehausen |date=10 February 2017 |journal=Nature Communications |volume=8 |page=14363 |doi=10.1038/ncomms14363 |doi-access=free |pmid=28186104 |pmc=5309898 |bibcode=2017NatCo...814363M}}</ref>

==Population status==
In 2010, the [[International Union for Conservation of Nature]] classified 184 species as [[Vulnerable species|vulnerable]], 52 as [[Endangered species|endangered]], and 106 as [[critically endangered]].<ref name=IUCNstatus>{{cite report |publisher=IUCN |year=2010 |url=http://www.iucnredlist.org/ |title=IUCN Red List of Threatened Species |version=2010.4. |access-date=26 April 2011}}

IUCN does not allow linking to search results. Use "Other Search Options" on the IUCN frontpage, then choose "Cichlidae" (Animalia→Chordata→Actinopterygii→Perciformes) under taxonomy, and then the specific threat category (Vulnerable, Endangered, etc.) under Assessment.
</ref>
At present, the IUCN only lists [[Yssichromis sp. nov. "argens"|''Yssichromis'' sp. nov. ''argens'']] as [[extinct in the wild]], and six species are listed as entirely extinct, but many more possibly belong in these categories (for example, ''[[Haplochromis aelocephalus]]'', ''[[Haplochromis apogonoides|H. apogonoides]]'', ''[[Haplochromis dentex|H. dentex]]'', ''[[Haplochromis dichrourus|H. dichrourus]]'', and numerous other members of the genus ''Haplochromis'' have not been seen since the 1980s, but are maintained as critically endangered on the small chance that tiny –but currently unknown– populations survive).<ref name=IUCNstatus/>

===Lake Victoria===
{{Main|Lake Victoria#Cichlid fish}}
[[File:Haplochromis thereuterion.jpg|thumb|''[[Haplochromis]] thereuterion'' has declined, but still survives in low numbers.<ref>{{Cite iucn |author1=Witte, F. |author2=de&nbsp;Zeeuw, M.P. |author3=Brooks, E. |year = 2010 | title = ''Haplochromis thereuterion'' | volume = 2010 | page = e.T185857A8492470 | doi = 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2010-3.RLTS.T185857A8492470.en }}</ref>]]

Because of the introduced [[Nile perch]] (''Lates niloticus''), [[Nile tilapia]] (''Oreochromis niloticus''), and [[water hyacinth]], [[deforestation]] that led to water [[siltation]], and [[overfishing]], many Lake Victoria cichlid species have become extinct or been drastically reduced. By around 1980, lake fisheries yielded only 1% cichlids, a drastic decline from 80% in earlier years.<ref name="Barlow2000"/>

By far the largest Lake Victoria group is the haplochromine cichlids, with more than 500 species, but at least 200 of these (about 40%) have become extinct,<ref name=DeWeerdt2004>{{cite news |last1=Deweerdt |first1=Sarah |title=Dark secret of the lake |url=https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg18124365-300-dark-secret-of-the-lake/ |work=New Scientist |date=28 February 2004 }}</ref><ref name=Lowe2009>{{cite journal |last1=Lowe-McConnell |first1=Rosemary |title=Fisheries and Cichlid Evolution in the African Great Lakes: Progress and Problems |journal=Freshwater Reviews |date=December 2009 |volume=2 |issue=2 |pages=131–151 |doi=10.1608/frj-2.2.2 |s2cid=54011001 }}</ref><ref name=Rijssel2013>{{cite journal |last1=van Rijssel |first1=Jacco C. |last2=Witte |first2=Frans |title=Adaptive responses in resurgent Lake Victoria cichlids over the past 30 years |journal=Evolutionary Ecology |date=March 2013 |volume=27 |issue=2 |pages=253–267 |doi=10.1007/s10682-012-9596-9 |bibcode=2013EvEco..27..253V |s2cid=2291741 }}</ref> and many others are seriously threatened.<ref name=Fiedler1998>{{cite book |editor1=Fiedler, P.L. |editor2=Kareiva, P.M. |year=1998 |title=Conservation Biology: For the coming decade |edition=2nd |pages=209–210 |publisher=Springer |isbn=978-0412096617}}</ref> Initially it was feared that the percentage of extinct species was even higher,<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Goldschmidt |first1=Tijs |last2=Witte |first2=Frans |last3=Wanink |first3=Jan |title=Cascading Effects of the Introduced Nile Perch on the Detritivorous/Phytoplanktivorous Species in the Sublittoral Areas of Lake Victoria |journal=Conservation Biology |date=September 1993 |volume=7 |issue=3 |pages=686–700 |doi=10.1046/j.1523-1739.1993.07030686.x |bibcode=1993ConBi...7..686G |s2cid=39341574 |url=http://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/1a6d/6d92438f01af8b9fa7f01fc9be4b92af020c.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190219194240/http://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/1a6d/6d92438f01af8b9fa7f01fc9be4b92af020c.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=2019-02-19 }}</ref> but some species have been rediscovered after the Nile perch started to decline in the 1990s.<ref name=Lowe2009/><ref name=IUCNef>IUCN Red Lists: [http://www.iucnredlist.org/initiatives/freshwater/eastafrica/geographicpatternsea Geographic Patterns]. Eastern Africa. Retrieved 25 March 2017.</ref> Some species have survived in nearby small satellite lakes,<ref name=IUCNef/> or in refugia among rocks or [[papyrus sedge]]s (protecting them from the Nile perch),<ref name=Chapman1996>{{cite journal |last1=Chapman |first1=Lauren J. |last2=Chapman |first2=Colin A. |last3=Chandler |first3=Mark |title=Wetland ecotones as refugia for endangered fishes |journal=Biological Conservation |date=December 1996 |volume=78 |issue=3 |pages=263–270 |doi=10.1016/s0006-3207(96)00030-4 |bibcode=1996BCons..78..263C |citeseerx=10.1.1.689.2625 }}</ref> or have adapted to the human-induced changes in the lake itself.<ref name=Lowe2009/><ref name=Rijssel2013/> The species were often specialists and these were not affected to the same extent. For example, the [[piscivorous]] haplochromines were particularly hard hit with a high number of extinctions,<ref>{{cite journal |last1=McGee |first1=M. D. |last2=Borstein |first2=S. R. |last3=Neches |first3=R. Y. |last4=Buescher |first4=H. H. |last5=Seehausen |first5=O. |last6=Wainwright |first6=P. C. |title=A pharyngeal jaw evolutionary innovation facilitated extinction in Lake Victoria cichlids |journal=Science |date=27 November 2015 |volume=350 |issue=6264 |pages=1077–1079 |doi=10.1126/science.aab0800 |pmid=26612951 |bibcode=2015Sci...350.1077M |doi-access=free }}</ref> while the [[Planktivore|zooplanktivorous]] haplochromines reached densities in 2001 that were similar to before the drastic decline, although consisting of fewer species and with some changes in their ecology.<ref name=Lowe2009/>

==Food and game fish==
Although cichlids are mostly small- to medium-sized, many are notable as food and game fishes. With few thick rib bones and tasty flesh, [[artisan fishing]] is not uncommon in Central America and South America, as well as areas surrounding the African [[Rift Valley lakes|rift lakes]].<ref name="Barlow2000">{{cite book|last=Barlow|first=G. W.|year=2000|title=The Cichlid Fishes|publisher=Cambridge, MA: Perseus Publishing|isbn=978-0-7382-0376-8|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/cichlidfishesnat00geor_0}}</ref>

===Tilapia===
The most important food cichlids, however, are the [[tilapiine]]s of North Africa. Fast growing, tolerant of stocking density, and adaptable, tilapiine species have been introduced and farmed extensively in many parts of Asia and are increasingly common [[aquaculture]] targets elsewhere.

Farmed tilapia production is about {{convert|1500000|t|ST|abbr=off}} annually, with an estimated value of US$1.8 billion,<ref>{{cite book |last1=Silva |first1=Sena S. De |last2=Nations |first2=Food and Agriculture Organization of the United |title=Tilapias as Alien Aquatics in Asia and the Pacific: A Review |date=2004 |publisher=Food & Agriculture Org. |isbn=978-92-5-105227-3 }}{{page needed|date=November 2020}}</ref> about equal to that of [[salmon]] and [[trout]].

Unlike those carnivorous fish, tilapia can feed on [[algae]] or any plant-based food. This reduces the cost of tilapia farming, reduces fishing pressure on prey species, avoids concentrating toxins that accumulate at higher levels of the [[food chain]], and makes tilapia the preferred "aquatic chickens" of the trade.<ref name="Barlow2000"/>

===Game fish===
Many large cichlids are popular game fish. The [[peacock bass]] (''[[Cichla]]'' species) of South America is one of the most popular [[sport fishing|sportfish]]. It was introduced in many waters around the world.{{Where|date=October 2014}} In [[Florida]], this fish generates millions of hours of fishing and sportfishing revenue of more than US$8 million a year.<ref name="floridafisheries">{{cite web|url=http://floridafisheries.com/fishes/non-native.html|title=Fact Exotic Freshwater Fishes|author=Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission|access-date=18 March 2007}}</ref> Other cichlids preferred by anglers include the [[oscar (fish)|oscar]], [[Mayan cichlid]] (''Cichlasoma urophthalmus''), and [[Parachromis managuensis|jaguar cichlid]] (''Parachromis managuensis'').<ref name="floridafisheries"/>

==Aquarium fish==
{{Further|List of cichlid fish of South America}}
[[File:Discus fish.jpg|thumb|left|200px|The discus, ''[[Symphysodon]]'' spp., has been popular among aquarium enthusiasts.]]
Since 1945, cichlids have become increasingly popular as aquarium fish.<ref name=Loiselle/><ref name=baensch>{{cite book |editor-last=Riehl |editor-first=Rüdiger |author-last=Baensch |author-first=H.A. |title=Aquarium Atlas |year=1996 |edition=5th |publisher=Tetra Press |place=Germany |isbn=978-3-88244-050-8}}</ref><ref name=Keenleyside/><ref name=FKGCC>{{cite book |author=Sands, D. |year=1994 |title=A Fishkeepers Guide to Central American Cichlids |publisher=Tetra Press |place=Belgium |pages=59–60}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |author=Mills, D. |year=1993 |title=Aquarium Fish |publisher=Harper Collins |isbn=0-7322-5012-9}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |author=Konings, A. |year=1997 |title=Back to Nature Guide to Malawi Cichlids |publisher=Druckhaus Beltz |place=Germany |pages=13–23}}</ref><ref name=FKGSAC>{{cite book |author=Leibel, W.S. |year=1993 |title=A Fishkeepers Guide to South American Cichlids |publisher=Tetra Press |place=Belgium |pages=12–14}}</ref>

The most common species in hobbyist aquaria is ''[[Pterophyllum scalare]]'' from the [[Amazon River]] basin in tropical South America, known in the trade as the "[[freshwater angelfish|angelfish]]". Other popular or readily available species include the [[Oscar (fish)|oscar]] (''Astronotus ocellatus''), [[convict cichlid]] (''Archocentrus nigrofasciatus'') and [[Symphysodon|discus fish]] (''Symphysodon'').<ref name="Loiselle"/>
{{clear}}

==Hybrids and selective breeding==
[[File:Red Texas.jpg|thumb|right|200px|The "red Texas cichlid" is not a [[Texas cichlid]] (''Herichthys cyanoguttatus'') but a cross-genus hybrid of ''[[Herichthys]]'' and ''[[Amphilophus]]'' parents.]]
Some cichlids readily [[Hybrid (biology)|hybrid]]ize with related species, both in the wild and under artificial conditions.<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Smith, P.F. |author2=Konings, A. |author3=Kornfield, I. |date=July 2003 |title=Hybrid origin of a cichlid population in Lake Malawi: Implications for genetic variation and species diversity |journal=[[Molecular Ecology]] |volume=12 |issue=9 |pages=2497–2504 |doi=10.1046/j.1365-294X.2003.01905.x |pmid=12919487 |bibcode=2003MolEc..12.2497S |s2cid=2829927 }}</ref> Other groups of fishes, such as European [[Cyprinidae|cyprinids]], also hybridize.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Wood |first1=A.B. |last2=Jordan |first2=D. R. |title=Fertility of roach × bream hybrids, ''Rutilus rutilus'' (L.) × ''Abramis brama'' (L.), and their identification |journal=Journal of Fish Biology |date=March 1987 |volume=30 |issue=3 |pages=249–261 |doi=10.1111/j.1095-8649.1987.tb05750.x |bibcode=1987JFBio..30..249W }}</ref> Unusually, cichlid hybrids have been put to extensive commercial use, in particular for aquaculture and aquaria.<ref name="Chapman"/><ref>{{cite web |title=Frequently asked questions on parrot cichlids |author=Clarke, Matt |website=Practical Fishkeeping |url=http://www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/pfk/pages/show_article.php?article_id=331 |access-date=20 October 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070926235443/http://www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/pfk/pages/show_article.php?article_id=331 |archive-date=26 September 2007 |url-status=dead}}</ref> The hybrid red strain of [[tilapia]], for example, is often preferred in aquaculture for its rapid growth. Tilapia hybridization can produce all-male populations to control stock density or prevent reproduction in ponds.<ref name="Chapman"/>

===Aquarium hybrids===
The most common aquarium hybrid is perhaps the [[blood parrot cichlid]], which is a cross of several species, especially from species in the genus ''[[Amphilophus]]''. (There are many hypotheses, but the most likely is: ''[[Amphilophus labiatus]]'' × ''[[Vieja melanurus|Vieja synspillus]]'' {{citation needed|date=January 2019}} With a triangular-shaped mouth, an abnormal [[Vertebral column|spine]], and an occasionally missing [[caudal fin]] (known as the "love heart" [[parrot]] cichlid), the fish is controversial among aquarists. Some have called blood parrot cichlids "the Frankenstein monster of the fish world".<ref name="aquafriend">{{cite web|url=http://www.aquafriend.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=66&mode=thread&order=0&thold=0 |title=It's The Frankenstein Monster of the Fish World: The Blood Parrot! |publisher=AquaFriend.com |date=27 October 2002 |access-date=5 December 2006 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060516094604/http://www.aquafriend.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=66&mode=thread&order=0&thold=0 |archive-date=16 May 2006}}</ref> Another notable hybrid, the [[flowerhorn cichlid]], was very popular in some parts of [[Asia]] from 2001 until late 2003, and is believed to bring good luck to its owner.<ref>{{cite news |author=Arnold, W. |date=1 July 2003 |title=Singapore's 'lucky' pet Luohan can outnumber people in homes |newspaper=[[International Herald Tribune]]}}</ref> The popularity of the flowerhorn cichlid declined in 2004.<ref>{{cite news |title=Crayfish the latest fad among pet lovers |newspaper=[[New Straits Times]] |place=Singapore, Malaysia |date=3 September 2004}}</ref> Owners released many specimens into the rivers and canals of [[Malaysia]] and [[Singapore]], where they threaten endemic communities.<ref>{{cite news |title=Flower horn: Joy in homes, a pest in rivers |newspaper=[[New Straits Times]] |place=Singapore, Malaysia |date=14 July 2004}}</ref>
[[File:Long finned oscar.jpg|right|thumb|200px|A [[Leucism|leucistic]] long-finned form of the oscar, ''A. ocellatus'']]
Numerous cichlid species have been [[selective breeding|selectively bred]] to develop ornamental aquarium strains. The most intensive programs have involved angelfish and discus, and many [[mutation]]s that affect both coloration and fins are known.<ref name=Loiselle/><ref>{{cite magazine |last=Norton |first=J. |year=1982 | title = Angelfish genetics |magazine=Freshwater and Marine Aquarium Magazine |volume=5 |page=4}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Koh |first1=Tieh Ling |last2=Khoo |first2=Gideon |last3=Fan |first3=Li Qun |last4=Phang |first4=Violet Pan Eng |date=30 March 1999 |title=Genetic diversity among wild forms and cultivated varieties of Discus (''Symphysodon'' spp.) as revealed by random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) fingerprinting |journal=Aquaculture |volume=173 |issue=1 |pages=485–497 |doi=10.1016/S0044-8486(98)00478-5 |bibcode=1999Aquac.173..485K }}</ref> Other cichlids have been bred for [[albino]], [[Leucism|leucistic]], and [[Xanthochromism|xanthistic]] [[pigment]] [[mutation]]s, including [[Oscar (fish)|oscars]], [[convict cichlid]] and ''[[Pelvicachromis pulcher]]''.<ref name=Loiselle/><ref name=baensch/> Both [[dominance (genetics)|dominant]] and [[dominance (genetics)|recessive]] pigment mutations have been observed.<ref name=Kornfield1991>{{cite book |author=Kornfield, I. |year=1991 |section=Genetics |title=Cichlid Fishes: Behaviour, ecology and evolution |editor=Keenleyside, M.H.A. |publisher=Chapman and Hall |place=London, UK |pages=109–115}}</ref> In [[convict cichlid]]s, for example, a leucistic coloration is recessively inherited,<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Itzkovich | first1 = J. | last2 = Rothbard | first2 = S. | last3 = Hulata | first3 = G. | year = 1981 | title = Inheritance of pink body colouration in ''Cichlasoma nigrofasciatum'' Günther (Pisces, Cichlidae) | journal = Genetica | volume = 55 | pages = 15–16 | doi=10.1007/bf00133997| s2cid = 38828706 }}</ref> while in ''[[Oreochromis niloticus niloticus]]'', red coloration is caused by a dominant inherited mutation.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = McAndrew | first1 = C.J. | last2 = Roubal | first2 = F.R. | last3 = Roberts | first3 = R.J. | last4 = Bullock | first4 = A.M. | last5 = McEwan | first5 = I.M. | year = 1988 | title = The genetics and history of red, blond, and associated color variants in ''Oreochromis niloticus'' | journal = Genetica | volume = 76 | issue = 2| pages = 127–137 | doi=10.1007/bf00058811| s2cid = 40666053 }}</ref>

This selective breeding may have [[unintended consequence]]s. For example, hybrid strains of ''[[Ram cichlid|Mikrogeophagus ramirezi]]'' have health and fertility problems.<ref name="dcichlids">
Linke H, Staeck L (1994) ''American cichlids I: Dwarf Cichlids. A handbook for their identification, care and breeding.'' Tetra Press. Germany. {{ISBN|1-56465-168-1}}</ref> Similarly, intentional [[inbreeding]] can cause physical abnormalities, such as the notched [[phenotype]] in [[Pterophyllum|angelfish]].<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Norton |first1=J |year=1994 |title=Notched – An Angelfish Deformity |journal=Freshwater and Marine Aquarium Magazine |volume=17 |issue=3 }}</ref>

==Genera==
The genus list is as per [[FishBase]]. Studies are continuing, however, on the members of this family, particularly the haplochromine cichlids of the African rift lakes.<ref name="fishbase_CS"/>

{|
|-
| style="vertical-align: top; width: 33%;" |
*''[[Abactochromis]]'' <small>Oliver & Arnegard 2010</small>
*''[[Acarichthys]]'' <small>[[Carl H. Eigenmann|Eigenmann]] 1912</small>
*''[[Acaronia]]'' <small>[[George S. Myers|Myers]] 1940</small>
*''[[Alcolapia]]'' <small>Thys van den Audenaerde 1969</small>
*''[[Alticorpus]]'' <small>Stauffer & McKaye 1988</small>
*''[[Altolamprologus]]'' <small>[[Max Poll|Poll]] 1986 </small>
*''[[Amatitlania]]'' <small>Schmitter-Soto, 2007</small>
*''[[Amphilophus]]'' <small>[[Louis Agassiz|Agassiz]], 1859</small>
*''[[Andinoacara]]'' <small>Musilova, Rican, & Novak 2009</small>
*''[[Anomalochromis]]'' <small>Greenwood 1985</small>
*''[[Apistogramma]]'' <small>[[Charles Tate Regan|Regan]] 1913</small>
*''[[Apistogrammoides]]'' <small>Meinken 1965 </small>
*''[[Aristochromis]]'' <small>[[Ethelwynn Trewavas|Trewavas]], 1935</small>
*''[[Astatoreochromis]]'' <small>[[Jacques Pellegrin|Pellegrin]] 1904</small>
*''[[Astatotilapia]]'' <small>Pellegrin 1904</small>
*''[[Astronotus]]'' <small>Swainson 1839</small>
*''[[Aulonocara]]'' <small>Regan 1922</small>
*''[[Aulonocranus]]'' <small>Regan 1920</small>
*''[[Australoheros]]'' <small>Rican & [[Sven O. Kullander|Kullander]] 2006 </small>
*''[[Baileychromis]]'' <small>Poll 1986</small>
*''[[Bathybates]]'' <small>[[George Albert Boulenger|Boulenger]] 1898</small>
*''[[Benitochromis]]'' <small>Lamboj 2001</small>
*''[[Benthochromis]]'' <small>Poll 1986</small>
*''[[Biotodoma]]'' <small>Eigenmann & Kennedy 1903</small>
*''[[Biotoecus]]'' <small>Eigenmann & Kennedy 1903</small>
*''[[Boulengerochromis]]'' <small>Pellegrin 1904</small>
*''[[Buccochromis]]'' <small>Eccles & Trewavas 1989</small>
*''[[Bujurquina]]'' <small>Kullander 1986</small>
*''[[Callochromis]]'' <small>Regan 1920</small>
*''[[Caprichromis]]'' <small>Eccles & Trewavas 1989</small>
*''[[Caquetaia]]'' <small>Fowler 1945</small>
*''[[Cardiopharynx]]'' <small>Poll 1942</small>
*''[[Chaetobranchopsis]]'' <small>[[Franz Steindachner|Steindachner]], 1875</small>
*''[[Chaetobranchus]]'' <small>[[Johann Jakob Heckel|Heckel]], 1840</small>
*''[[Chalinochromis]]'' <small>Poll 1974</small>
*''[[Champsochromis]]'' <small>Boulenger 1915</small>
*''[[Cheilochromis]]'' <small>Eccles & Trewavas 1989</small>
*''[[Chetia]]'' <small>Trewavas 1961</small>
*''[[Chilochromis]]'' <small>Boulenger 1902</small>
*''[[Chilotilapia]]'' <small>Boulenger 1908</small>
*''[[Chromidotilapia]]'' <small>Boulenger 1898</small>
*''[[Cichla]]'' <small>Bloch & Schneider 1801</small>
*''[[Cichlasoma]]'' <small>Swainson 1839</small>
*''[[Cleithracara]]'' <small>Kullander & [[Han Nijssen|Nijssen]] 1989</small>
*''[[Coelotilapia]]''<ref name=Dunz2013>{{cite journal | last1 = Dunz | first1 = A.R. | last2 = Schliewen | first2 = U.K. | year = 2013 | title = Molecular phylogeny and revised classification of the haplotilapiine cichlid fishes formerly referred to as ''"Tilapia"'' | journal = Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution | volume = 68| issue = 1| pages = 64–80| doi = 10.1016/j.ympev.2013.03.015 | pmid = 23542002 | bibcode = 2013MolPE..68...64D }}</ref>
*''[[Congochromis]]'' <small>Stiassny & Schliewen 2007</small>
*''[[Congolapia]]''
*''[[Copadichromis]]'' <small>Eccles & Trewavas 1989</small>
*''[[Coptodon]]''<ref name=Dunz2013/>
*''[[Corematodus]]'' <small>Boulenger 1897</small>
*''[[Crenicara]]'' <small>Steindachner 1875 </small>
*''[[Crenicichla]]'' <small>Heckel 1840</small>
*''[[Cryptoheros]]'' <small>Allgayer 2001</small>
*''[[Ctenochromis]]'' <small>Pfeffer 1893</small>
*''[[Ctenopharynx]]'' <small>Eccles & Trewavas 1989</small>
*''[[Cunningtonia]]'' <small>Boulenger 1906</small>
*''[[Cyathochromis]]'' <small>Trewavas 1935</small>
*''[[Cyathopharynx]]'' <small>Regan 1920</small>
*''[[Cyclopharynx]]'' <small>Poll 1948</small>
*''[[Cynotilapia]]'' <small>Regan 1922</small>
*''[[Cyphotilapia]]'' <small>Regan 1920</small>
*''[[Cyprichromis]]'' <small>Scheuermann 1977</small>
*''[[Cyrtocara]]'' <small>Boulenger 1902</small>
*''[[Danakilia]]'' <small>Thys van den Audenaerde 1969</small>
*''[[Dicrossus]]'' <small>Steindachner 1875 </small>
*''[[Dimidiochromis]]'' <small>Eccles & Trewavas 1989</small>
*''[[Diplotaxodon]]'' <small>Trewavas 1935</small>
*''[[Divandu]]'' <small>Lamboj & Snoeks 2000</small>
*''[[Docimodus]]'' <small>Boulenger 1897</small>
*''[[Eclectochromis]]'' <small>Eccles & Trewavas 1989</small>
*''[[Ectodus]]'' <small>Boulenger 1898</small>
*''[[Enigmatochromis]]'' <small>Lamboj 2009</small>
*''[[Eretmodus]]'' <small>Boulenger 1898</small>
*''[[Etia]]'' <small>Schliewen & Stiassny 2003</small>
| style="vertical-align: top; width: 33%;" |
*''[[Etroplus]]'' <small>[[Georges Cuvier|Cuvier]] 1830</small>
*''[[Exochochromis]]'' <small>Eccles & Trewavas 1989</small>
*''[[Fossorochromis]]'' <small>Eccles & Trewavas 1989</small>
*''[[Genyochromis]]'' <small>Trewavas 1935</small>
*''[[Geophagus]]'' <small>Heckel 1840 </small>
*''[[Gephyrochromis]]'' <small>Boulenger 1901 </small>
*''[[Gnathochromis]]'' <small>Poll 1981</small>
*''[[Gobiocichla]]'' <small>Kanazawa 1951</small>
*''[[Grammatotria]]'' <small>Boulenger 1899</small>
*''[[Greenwoodochromis]]'' <small>Poll 1983</small>
*''[[Guianacara]]'' <small>Kullander & Nijssen 1989</small>
*''[[Gymnogeophagus]]'' <small>Miranda Ribeiro 1918 </small>
*''[[Haplochromis]]'' <small>Hilgendorf 1888</small>
*''[[Haplotaxodon]]'' <small>Boulenger 1906</small>
*''[[Hemibates]]'' <small>Regan 1920</small>
*''[[Hemichromis]]'' <small>Peters 1857</small>
*''[[Hemitaeniochromis]]'' <small>Eccles & Trewavas 1989</small>
*''[[Hemitilapia]]'' <small>Boulenger 1902</small>
*''[[Herichthys]]'' <small>Baird & Girard 1854</small>
*''[[Heroina (fish)|Heroina]]'' <small>Kullander, 1996</small>
*''[[Heros (fish)|Heros]]'' <small>Heckel, 1840</small>
*''[[Heterochromis]]'' <small>Regan 1922</small>
*''[[Heterotilapia]]''<ref name=Dunz2013/>
*''[[Hoplarchus]]'' <small>[[Johann Jakob Kaup|Kaup]],1860</small>
*''[[Hypselecara]]'' <small>Kullander 1986</small>
*''[[Hypsophrys]]'' <small>[[Louis Agassiz|Agassiz]] 1859</small>
*''[[Interochromis]]'' <small>Yamaoka, Hori & Kuwamura 1988</small>
*''[[Iodotropheus]]'' <small>Oliver & Loiselle 1972 </small>
*''[[Iranocichla]]'' <small>Coad 1982</small>
*''[[Julidochromis]]'' <small>Boulenger 1898</small>
*''[[Katria]]'' <small>Stiassny & Sparks 2006</small>
*''[[Konia (fish)|Konia]]'' <small>Trewavas 1972</small>
*''[[Krobia (fish)|Krobia]]'' <small>Kullander & Nijssen 1989</small>
*''[[Labeotropheus]]'' <small>[[Ernst Ahl|Ahl]] 1926 </small>
*''[[Labidochromis]]'' <small>Trewavas 1935</small>
*''[[Laetacara]]'' <small>Kullander 1986</small>
*''[[Lamprologus]]'' <small>Schilthuis 1891 </small>
*''[[Lepidiolamprologus]]'' <small>Pellegrin 1904</small>
*''[[Lestradea]]'' <small>Poll 1943</small>
*''[[Lethrinops]]'' <small>Regan 1922</small>
*''[[Lichnochromis]]'' <small>Trewavas 1935</small>
*''[[Limbochromis]]'' <small>Greenwood 1987 </small>
*''[[Limnochromis]]'' <small>Regan 1920</small>
*''[[Limnotilapia]]'' <small>Regan 1920</small>
*''[[Lobochilotes]]'' <small>Boulenger 1915</small>
*†''Mahengechromis'' <small>Murray 2001</small><ref>{{cite journal|last=Murray|first=Alison M.|date=19 January 2001|title=Eocene cichlid fishes from Tanzania, east Africa|journal=[[Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology]]|volume=20|issue=4|pages=651–664|doi=10.1671/0272-4634(2000)020[0651:ECFFTE]2.0.CO;2|jstor=4524146|s2cid=86093448}}</ref>
*''[[Maylandia]]''  <small>Meyer & Foerster 1984</small>
*''[[Mazarunia]]'' <small>Kullander 1990</small>
*''[[Mchenga]]'' <small>Stauffer & Konings, 2006</small>
*''[[Melanochromis]]'' <small>Trewavas, 1935</small>
*''[[Mesonauta]]'' <small>[[Albert C. L. G. Günther|Günther]], 1862</small>
*''[[Microchromis]]'' <small>Johnson 1975 </small>
*''[[Mikrogeophagus]]'' <small>Meulengracht-Madson 1968</small>
*''[[Myaka (fish)|Myaka]]'' <small>Trewavas 1972</small>
*''[[Mylochromis]]'' <small>Regan 1920 </small>
*''[[Naevochromis]]'' <small>Eccles & Trewavas 1989</small>
*''[[Nandopsis]]'' <small>Gill, 1862</small>
*''[[Nannacara]]'' <small>Regan 1905</small><!-- ZoolAbhDresden54:155 -->
*''[[Nanochromis]]'' <small>Pellegrin 1904</small>
*''[[Neolamprologus]]'' <small>Colombe & Allgayer 1985</small>
*''[[Nimbochromis]]'' <small>Eccles & Trewavas 1989 </small>
*''[[Nosferatu (fish)|Nosferatu]]'' <small>De la Maza-Benignos, Ornelas-García, Lozano-Vilano, García Ramírez & Doadrio, 2015</small><ref name="De la Maza-Benignos et al 2015">{{cite journal|author=De la Maza-Benignos, M. |author2=Ornelas-García, C. P. |author3=Lozano-Vilano, M.d.L. |author4=García-Ramírez, M.E. |author5=Doadrio, I.|year=2015|title=Phylogeographic analysis of genus ''Herichthys'' (Perciformes: Cichlidae), with descriptions of ''Nosferatu'' new genus and ''H. tepehua'' n. sp.|journal=Hydrobiologia|volume=748|issue=1|pages=201–231|doi=10.1007/s10750-014-1891-8|bibcode=2015HyBio.748..201D |hdl=10261/126238|s2cid=16769534|hdl-access=free}}</ref>
*''[[Nyassachromis]]'' <small>Eccles & Trewavas 1989</small>
*''[[Ophthalmotilapia]]'' <small>Pellegrin 1904</small>
*''[[Oreochromis]]'' <small>Günther 1889</small>
*''[[Orthochromis]]'' <small>Greenwood 1954</small>
*''[[Otopharynx]]'' <small>Regan 1920</small>
*''[[Oxylapia]]'' <small>Kiener & Maugé 1966 </small><!-- MolPhylEvol30:599 -->
*''[[Pallidochromis]]'' <small>Turner 1994</small>
*''[[Parachromis]]'' <small>Agassiz 1859</small>
*''[[Paracyprichromis]]'' <small>Poll 1986</small>
*''[[Parananochromis]]'' <small>Greenwood 1987</small>
*''[[Paraneetroplus]]'' <small>Regan 1905</small>
*''[[Paratilapia]]'' <small>[[Pieter Bleeker|Bleeker]], 1868</small>
*''[[Paretroplus]]'' <small>Bleeker, 1868</small><!-- MolPhylEvol30:599 -->
*''[[Pelmatochromis]]'' <small>Steindachner 1894</small>
*''[[Pelmatolapia]]''<ref name=Dunz2013/>
| style="vertical-align: top; width: 33%;" |
*''[[Pelvicachromis]]'' <small>Thys van den Audenaerde 1968</small>
*''[[Perissodus]]'' <small>Boulenger 1898</small>
*''[[Petenia]]'' <small>Günther, 1862</small>
*''[[Petrochromis]]'' <small>Boulenger 1898</small>
*''[[Petrotilapia]]'' <small>Trewavas 1935</small>
*''[[Pharyngochromis]]'' <small>Greenwood 1979</small>
*''[[Placidochromis]]'' <small>Eccles & Trewavas 1989</small>
*''[[Plecodus]]'' <small>Boulenger 1898</small>
*†''Plesioheros'' <small>Malabarba, Zuleta & del Papa 2006</small><ref name=M14/>
*†''Proterocara'' <small>Perez, Malabarba, & del Papa 2010</small><ref name=M14/>
*''[[Protomelas]]'' <small>Eccles & Trewavas 1989</small>
*''[[Pseudocrenilabrus]]'' <small>Fowler 1934</small>
*''[[Pseudosimochromis]]'' <small>[[Mark H. J. Nelissen|Nelissen]] 1977 </small>
*''[[Pseudotropheus]]'' <small>Regan 1922</small>
*''[[Pterochromis]]'' <small>Trewavas 1973</small>
*''[[Pterophyllum]]'' <small>Heckel 1840</small>
*''[[Ptychochromis]]'' <small>Steindachner 1880</small><!-- MolPhylEvol30:599 -->
*''[[Ptychochromoides]]'' <small>Kiener & Mauge 1966</small> <!-- MolPhylEvol30:599 -->
*''[[Pungu]]'' <small>Trewavas 1972 </small>
*''[[Reganochromis]]'' <small>Whitley 1929</small>
*''[[Retroculus]]'' <small>Eigenmann & Bray 1894</small>
*''[[Rhamphochromis]]'' <small>Regan 1922</small>
*''[[Rocio]]'' <small>Schmitter-Soto, 2007</small>
*''[[Sargochromis]]'' <small>Regan 1920 </small>
*''[[Sarotherodon]]'' <small>Rppell 1852</small>
*''[[Satanoperca]]'' <small>Günther, 1862 </small>
*''[[Schwetzochromis]]'' <small>Poll 1948</small>
*''[[Sciaenochromis]]'' <small>Eccles & Trewavas 1989</small>
*''[[Serranochromis]]'' <small>Regan 1920</small>
*''[[Simochromis]]'' <small>Boulenger 1898</small>
*''[[Spathodus]]'' <small>Boulenger 1900</small>
*''[[Steatocranus]]'' <small>Boulenger 1899</small>
*''[[Stigmatochromis]]'' <small>Eccles & Trewavas 1989</small>
*''[[Stomatepia]]'' <small>Trewavas 1962</small>
*''[[Symphysodon]]'' <small>Heckel 1840</small>
*''[[Taeniacara]]'' <small>Myers 1935</small>
*''[[Taeniochromis]]'' <small>Eccles & Trewavas 1989</small>
*''[[Taeniolethrinops]]'' <small>Eccles & Trewavas 1989</small>
*''[[Tahuantinsuyoa]]'' <small>Kullander 1991 </small>
*''[[Tangachromis]]'' <small>Poll 1981</small>
*''[[Tanganicodus]]'' <small>Poll 1950</small>
*''[[Teleocichla]]'' <small>Kullander 1988</small>
*''[[Teleogramma]]'' <small>Boulenger 1899</small>
*''[[Telmatochromis]]'' <small>Boulenger 1898</small>
*''[[Theraps]]'' <small>Günther, 1862 </small>
*''[[Thoracochromis]]'' <small>Greenwood 1979 </small>
*''[[Thorichthys]]'' <small>[[Seth Eugene Meek|Meek]] 1904</small>
*''[[Thysochromis]]'' <small>Daget 1988</small>
*''[[Tilapia (genus)|Tilapia]]'' <small>Smith, 1840</small> See also: [[Tilapia|Tilapiine cichlids]]
*''[[Tomocichla]]'' <small>Regan 1908  </small>
*''[[Tramitichromis]]'' <small>Eccles & Trewavas 1989</small>
*''[[Trematocara]]'' <small>Boulenger 1899 </small>
*''[[Trematocranus]]'' <small>Trewavas 1935</small>
*†''Tremembichthys'' <small>Malabarba & Malabarba 2008</small><ref name=M14/>
*''[[Triglachromis]]'' <small>Poll & Thys van den Audenaerde 1974</small>
*''[[Tristramella]]'' <small>Trewavas 1942</small>
*''[[Tropheops]]'' <small>Trewavas 1984 </small>
*''[[Tropheus]]'' <small>Boulenger 1898 </small>
*''[[Tylochromis]]'' <small>Regan 1920 </small>
*''[[Tyrannochromis]]'' <small>Eccles & Trewavas 1989</small>
*''[[Uaru]]'' <small>Heckel 1840</small>
*''[[Variabilichromis]]'' <small>Colombe & Allgayer 1985</small>
*†''[[Warilochromis]]'' <small>Altner, Ruthensteiner & Reichenbacher 2008</small>
*''[[Xenochromis]]'' <small>Boulenger 1899</small>
*''[[Xenotilapia]]'' <small>Boulenger 1899</small>
|}

==Gallery==
<gallery>
File:Astronotus ocellatus.jpg|The [[Oscar (fish)|oscar]] (''Astronotus ocellatus'') is one of the most popular cichlids in the [[fishkeeping]] hobby.
File:ButterflyPeacockBass 01.jpg|The butterfly peacock bass (''[[Cichla ocellaris]]'') was introduced intentionally in [[Florida]] as [[sport fishing|gamefish]].
File:Oreochromis niloticus.jpg|The Nile tilapia (''[[Oreochromis niloticus]]'') is farmed extensively as food fish in many parts of the world.
File:Pterophyllum scalare-narybek.jpg|The angelfish (''[[Pterophyllum scalare]]'') has long been commercially bred for the aquarium trade.
File:Maylandia lombardoi.jpg|[[Sexual dimorphism]] is common in cichlids. Shown here are a male (front, with egg spots) and a female (rear) ''[[Maylandia lombardoi]]''.
File:Mikrogeophagus.jpg|A pair of blue rams (''[[Mikrogeophagus ramirezi]]''), male in front, female behind. Many cichlids form strong [[pair bond]]s while breeding.
File:Diskuslaich1a.jpeg|A discus (''[[Symphysodon|Symphysodon spp.]]'') is guarding its eggs. Advanced broodcare is one of the defining characteristics of cichlids.
File:Adult_male_livingstonii.png|[[Lake Malawi]], Eastern [[Africa]], is home to numerous cichild species including this Livingston's cichlid (''[[Nimbochromis livingstonii]]'').
File:Maylandia lombardoi male Lake Malawi Cichlid yellow.jpg|Also from Lake Malawi
File:Labeotropheus sp Lake Malawi Cichlid pale femelle.jpg|Also from Lake Malawi
File:Lamprologusstappersimalemcl.jpg|A [[Shell dweller|shell-brooding]] cichlid of the genus ''[[Lamprologus]]'' from [[Lake Tanganyika]] in [[East Africa]]
File:Herichthys cyanoguttatum (Rio Grande Cichlid).jpg|The Texas cichlid (''[[Herichthys cyanoguttatus]]'') is the only cichlid native to the United States.
File:Pelvicachromis pulcher (female).jpg|''[[Pelvicachromis pulcher]]'' is a [[West Africa]]n riverine cichlid, and part of the aquarists [[dwarf cichlid]] group.
File:Flowerhorn.jpg|The [[flowerhorn cichlid]] is a man-made [[Hybrid (biology)|hybrid]] that has recently gained popularity among aquarists, particularly in [[Asia]].
<!-- Deleted image removed: File:Pantapec Cichlid.jpg|Texas Cichlid (''Herichthys cyanoguttatus'') -->
File:Ivanacara adoketa5164.jpg|''[[Ivanacara adoketa]]'', a [[dwarf cichlid]] from [[Brazil]]
File:Red Terror Festae Chiclid.jpg|The [[Cichlasoma|red terror cichlid]] is a highly aggressive species from the rivers of Northeast South America.
File:Female Juvenile .jpg|A juvenile female [[Maylandia lombardoi]] with faint stripes
File:Juvenile Royal Acara.jpg|A juvenile ''[[Aequidens]] diadema''
</gallery>

==Footnotes==
{{notelist}}

== References ==
{{reflist|25em}}

== Further reading ==
* {{cite book |author=Barlow, G.W. |year=2000 |title=The Cichlid Fishes |place=Cambridge, MA |publisher=Perseus Publishing}}
* {{ITIS |id=169770 |taxon=Cichlidae}}: National Museum of Natural History, Washington, D.C., 2004-05-11).
* {{cite report |author=Sany, R.H. |year=2012 |title=Taxonomy of Cichlids and Angels |type=web publication}}{{full citation needed|date=April 2023|reason=If "web publication" at least needs a URL.}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Cichlidae}}
* {{cite web |editor-first=Michael |editor-last=Oliver |date=15 October 2021 |orig-date=7 May 1997 |title=The cichlid fishes of Lake Malawi, Africa |type=main page |website=MalawiCichlids.com |url=http://www.malawicichlids.com/ |access-date=1 May 2023}}
* {{cite report |first=H.J. |last=van der Meer |date=2008–2013 |title=Vision in cichlids: Ecomorphology of vision in haplochromine cichlids of Lake Victoria |url=http://www.vision-in-cichlids.com/}}
* {{cite EB1911 |wstitle=Cichlid |volume=6 |page=360 |short=1}}

{{Taxonbar|from=Q3406}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Cichlidae|*]]
[[Category:Cichliformes]]
[[Category:Extant Lutetian first appearances]]
[[Category:Fishkeeping]]
[[Category:Taxa named by Charles Lucien Bonaparte]]