Figure 2.

Early development and depredation of host cichlid hatchlings by cuckoo catfish young. (a) Eggs of the cuckoo catfish (denoted Sm) and M. zebra (denoted Mz) shortly after fertilization. (b) Developmental sequence from 2 dpf through 6 dpf. Arrowheads indicate the location of the diminishing yolk sac of the cuckoo catfish. The M. zebra shown at 4 dpf was manually removed from its chorion prior to measuring and photographing. (c) Cuckoo catfish at 6 dpf eating a newly hatched M. zebra cichlid by biting and latching on to the head. (d) Cuckoo catfish after complete ingestion of a cichlid hatchling. (e) Cuckoo catfish consuming a second cichlid shortly after consumption of the first. 1 mm scale bars are represented by horizontal white or black lines in the bottom right of photos.