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Paedophagy

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Paedophagy

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Ptychochrominae, Astronotinae, Predatory dinoflagellate, Heterochromis, Retroculus

Paedophagy (literally meaning the "consumption of children") is the feeding behaviour of fish or other animals whose diet is partially, or primarily the eggs or larvae of other animals. Various species of cichlid fish from Lake Malawi of the genera Caprichromis, Hemitaeniochromis, and Naevochromis are paedophages. In Lake Tanganyika species of the genus Haplotaxodon and possibly Greenwoodochromis bellcrossi may also be implicated in this sort of feeding strategy. The orange chromide, (Etroplus maculatus) is also a paedophagous cichlid.

Some paedophagus fish specialise in feeding on the young of mouthbrooding cichlids, ramming the buccal cavity of the mouthbrooder to dislodge, and then consume the eggs or larvae held within.

References

Paedophagy Wikipedia