Persistence of Stomatepia mongo, an Endemic Cichlid Fish of the Barombi Mbo Crater Lake, Southwestern Cameroon, with Notes on Its Life History and Behavior

The extinction of Stomatepia mongo Trewavas, 1972, a cichlid species from the Barombi Mbo crater lake, Cameroon, has been repeatedly speculated. Here, we review over 180 presumably unpublished records of this species since its description. Because a majority of them originate from our extensive surveys in the last several years, it is evident that this species still persists. Nevertheless, it is still considered as the rarest species in the lake, but its relative abundance is probably comparable to that in 1972 when the species was originally described. The species also does not seem to live exclusively in deep waters as was previously hypothesized, because we repeatedly collected and/or observed it in the shallow waters as well. We also listed our notes on the species' coloration and behavior. Although we document the persistence of S. mongo, it remains threatened by the impact of intensive human activities (fishing and farming) in the area.