African Lungfish
Also called Marbled lungfish

Protopterus aethiopicus

Where is it found?

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Riverbeds and floodplains

Diet and foraging method

Stalking, ambush predators, capture prey with a powerful suction action, prey is chewed, spat out, sucked back into the mouth

Key adaptations

The smooth, slimy, elongated body of the marbled lungfish is well suited for burrowing into the mud to survive droughts. They have tooth plates with sharp cutting ridges for breaking the shells of their mollusc prey.

Social organisation and mating system

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Polygynous mating system. One or many females lay eggs in a nest which is built by the male. Males proceed to fertilise these eggs before guarding and oxygenating them.

Did you know that...?

Marbled lungfishes can live in dried up lakes and streams for long periods, by burrowing into the mud in a cocoon and breathing through an air bubble.  

Taxonomy

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Picture credits:

Maps from: http://species.mol.org/species/
"Leopard lungfish (Protopterus aethiopicus) close - GRB" by George Berninger Jr. - Own work. Licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Leopard_lungfish_(Protopterus_aethiopicus)_close_-_GRB.JPG#/media/File:Leopard_lungfish_(Protopterus_aethiopicus)_close_-_GRB.JPG
"Marbled lungfish 1" by OpenCage = User:OpenCage - http://opencage.info/pics.e/large_11454.asp. Licensed under CC BY 2.5 via Wikimedia Commons - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Marbled_lungfish_1.jpg#/media/File:Marbled_lungfish_1.jpg