| Kampango | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Siluriformes |
| Family: | Bagridae |
| Genus: | Bagrus |
| Species: | B. meridionalis |
| Binomial name | |
| Bagrus meridionalis Günther, 1894 | |
Thekampango orkampoyo (Bagrus meridionalis) is acritically endangered species of large and predatorybagrid catfish that isendemic toLake Malawi,Lake Malombe and the upperShire River in Africa.[1] It prefers areas near rocks in water shallower than 50 m (160 ft), but it also occurs deeper (not beyond theoxygen limit) and over a sandy or muddy bottom.[1][2]
The kampango is among the largest fish in the Lake Malawibasin, reaching up to about 1 m (3.3 ft) long,[1][3] or possibly even 1.5 m (4.9 ft).[2] A common length is around 42 cm (1.4 ft) and females are typically larger than males.[2] Adults are overall blackish, while young are grey with dark spots.[3] During the day kampangos hide in caves,[3] but around dusk or dawn they hunt and eat their prey, primarilycichlids.[1]
The male digs a shallow nest in the sandy bottom, often near rocks, where the female lays several thousand eggs.[3] After hatching, the young mostly eattrophic (unfertilized) egg that their mother lays, but they also take invertebrates that the father brings to them in his mouth.[2][4] The eggs and young are fiercely guarded by the parents. The young kampango only leave the protection of their parents when around 12 cm (4.7 in) long, but before that most have typically already been eaten by egg- andfry-stealing cichlids likeMylochromis melanonotus andPseudotropheus crabro.[3] At other timesPseudotropheus crabro has amutualistic relationship with the kampango, as it willclean it by feeding onparasites and dead tissue.[2][5] Another catfish,Bathyclarias nyasensis, is abrood parasite of the kampango. Kampango parents have been observed taking care of entire broods ofB. nyasensis young as if they were their own. As these broods almost exclusively containB. nyasensis young, it is suspected that they hatch earlier than the kampango's own eggs and eat them.[4]
In contrast to the nest predators and parasites, certain cichlids, especiallyCopadichromis pleurostigmoides,Ctenopharynx pictus andRhamphochromis, will release their young near nesting kampango. The kampango and cichlid parents both protect the mixed group, resulting in a significantly higher survival rate of the kampango young.[1][6]
Kampango are highly prized as an eating fish, and are caught using nets and more commonly line caught, mainly in deep water aroundCape Maclear,Salima,Mbenje Island, andNkhata Bay. Fresh kampango are usually filleted and deep-fried,barbecued, or cooked with tomato and onion as a traditional Malawian dish, served withnsima.
Traditionally regarded as one of the most widespread and common fish in its range, the kampango has declined drastically because ofoverfishing and is now consideredcritically endangered by theIUCN. From 2006 to 2016, its population declined by more than 90% based on the fall observed in catch rates in fisheries in southern Lake Malawi.[1]
