Heterotilapia is a genus of cichlid fish that are native to rivers from Guinea-Bissau to Liberia in tropical West Africa. Formerly considered a subgenus of Tilapia, in 2013, it was elevated to genus rank. They are medium-large cichlids, up to about in standard length depending on the species, and with a distinctive dark-and-light banded pattern. They are substrate spawners and brooders (not as some other ). H. buttikoferi is a common species that also has been introduced outside its native range, but H. cessiana is highly localized and critically endangered.
Species
Two recognized species are in this genus:[
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Heterotilapia buttikoferi (Hubrecht, 1881) (zebra tilapia)
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Heterotilapia cessiana (Thys van den Audenaerde, 1968)