On Madagascar, however, things were different. On the entire huge island continent, there are just about 40 cichlids. Interestingly, in terms of developmental history, they are quite far down at the root of the cheerfully proliferating cichlid family tree. This makes the Malagasy cichlids a particularly valuable research object compared to their explosively species-forming close relatives on the continent. Unfortunately, it is to be feared that researchers will not have much time left to study these evolutionary-biological gems in more detail, because many of Madagascar’s cichlids are on the brink of extinction. Virtually all Malagasy chichlids are endangered, critically endangered, or even threatened with extinction – if we know that at all, because data is lacking for many species. Not so with the Nosy Be cichlid. It is already known that it is highly endangered. It lives in the northwest of Madagascar, where its home waters have been massively affected by large-scale deforestation and subsequent erosion, which has led to massive siltation and deterioration of water quality. Unless the water is completely removed for irrigation. Accordingly, it looks bad for the species there.

The fact that the Nosy Be cichlid is “only” listed as “critically endangered” on the Red List is due to a special circumstance. As its name suggests, it is also found on the offshore island of Nosy Be, where it swims around in the still largely undisturbed crater lakes. The fact that the situation is much better there is due on the one hand to the more traditional way of life of the people on Nosy Be, and on the other hand to the traditional way of life of the Nile crocodiles that occur there in high density. This ensures that many people prefer to stay at a distance. In the meantime, the crater lakes have become part of a protected area. This benefits not only the Nosy Be cichlids, but also many other native species.

Aquariums are sometimes referred to as “lakes in a glass,” and accordingly Citizen Conservation is trying to significantly increase the number of lakes where the Nosy Be cichlid finds safe refuge. Starting with the Cologne Zoo, which cares for and breeds the cichlid in its program for endangered Malagasy freshwater fishes, many more husbandries are to be established, also with private aquarists, in order to build up a stable population in human hands as a safety copy. So that soon crocodiles will not be the only ones watching over these quaint representatives of one of the most exciting groups of animals on the planet in terms of evolutionary biology.