Juveniles are silver in colour and feed on mayfly larvae and terrestrial insects, while adults are a dark grey/green and feed mainly on phytoplankton. Every individual is demersal and diurnal, meaning they live and feed on the lake bed and are active during the day. They form schools of less than ten individuals.
Fun fact –
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Ecology
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Threats
Blackfin tilapia may be threatened by carbon dioxide given off by lakes in a process known as ’lake burping’, as deep water species have been found dead on the surface of unusually turbid water. Slash and burn agriculture pollutes the lake and causes sediment to enter the water. Deforestation around the lake leaves it more exposed to wind, which disturbs the low oxygen, high organic matter layer where these fish live. Water is also being pumped out of the lake to supply the nearby town of Kumba.
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Conservation
Commercial fishing is forbidden in the lake and no non-native species have been introduced. Captive populations are maintained in zoos, but far more conservation action is required, including surveys to find out the current population and to learn more about their ecology. Nature’s SAFE stores samples to increase potential future populations.
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Preserved January 2024
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