In November 1999, I visited Dr. Ken McKaye in Nicaragua to observe cichlids at two different sites in southwest Nicaragua: Lake Xiloa and Lake Apoyo. Lake Xiloa is particularly interesting to me because it contains many of the same species as my field site in the Rio Puerto Viejo, Costa Rica. But, just because they are the same species, doesn't mean they behave the same way, and in fact, some of the species in Lake Xiloa behave quite differently than those in the Rio Puerto Viejo.

These lakes are actually the water-filled craters of inactive volcanos. Inactive, not necessarily extinct. At some places in Xiloa, bubbles of volcanic gases stream from the lake bed which is actually hot to the touch!

• Location and Biogeography
• The Fishes