Lamprologus lethops Roberts & Stewart, 1976
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
Lamprologus lethops is a species of cichlid fish from areas with fast current in the Congo River in Central Africa, where it is believed to live in depths as great as 160 m (520 ft) or 200 m (660 ft) below the surface. It reaches up to about 12.5 cm (5 in) in standard length, with females being somewhat smaller than males, is all whitish in color (non-pigmented), and essentially blind as adult, as their eyes are covered in a thick layer of skin (only retain a slight sensibility to light). This is entirely unique among cichlids and an adaption to the perpetual darkness of its habitat, similar to the adaptions seen in cavefish. The eyes of juveniles are rudimentary and not covered by skin. L. lethops is almost only known from the mainstream of the lower Congo River in the vicinity of Bulu; however very small numbers have been found up to 20–30 km (12–19 mi) upstream or downstream from this site. The relatively high number of L.
Wikipedia contributors, Lamprologus lethops; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T22:59:54.578866+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Lamprologus lethops Roberts & Stewart, 1976
- Name authority
- Roberts & Stewart, 1976
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Teleostei
- Order
- Cichliformes
- Family
- Cichlidae
- Genus
- Lamprologus
- Extinction status
- Not supplied by this source
Source habitat flags: Marine: no · Freshwater: yes · Terrestrial: no. These do not form a complete habitat description.
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- gigaclassActinopterygii
- superclassActinopteri
- classTeleostei
- orderCichliformes
- familyCichlidae Bonaparte, 1835
- subfamilyPseudocrenilabrinae Fowler, 1934
- genusLamprologus Schilthuis, 1891
- speciesLamprologus lethops Roberts & Stewart, 1976
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Lamprologus. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Lamprologus finalimus Nichols & La Monte, 1931 | CichlidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Lamprologus kungweensis Poll, 1956 | CichlidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Lamprologus laparogramma Bills & Ribbink, 1997 | CichlidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Lamprologus lemairii Boulenger, 1899 | CichlidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Lamprologus signatus Poll, 1952 | CichlidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Lamprologus speciosus Büscher, 1991 | CichlidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Lamprologus teugelsi Schelly & Stiassny, 2004 | CichlidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Lamprologus tumbanus Boulenger, 1899 | CichlidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Lamprologus callipterus Boulenger, 1906 | CichlidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Lamprologus congoensis Schilthuis, 1891 | CichlidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Lamprologus meleagris Büscher, 1991 | CichlidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Lamprologus ocellatus (Steindachner, 1909) | CichlidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- Roberts, T. R., & Stewart, D. J. (1976). An ecological and systematic survey of fishes in the rapids of the lower Zaïre or Congo River. Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology, 147 (6): 239–317, Pls. 1–14. Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:3S4Q7. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.