Astatheros macracanthus
| Astatheros macracanthus | ||||||||||||
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Astatheros macracanthus |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name of the genus | ||||||||||||
| Astatheros | ||||||||||||
| Pellegrin , 1904 | ||||||||||||
| Scientific name of the species | ||||||||||||
| Astatheros macracanthus | ||||||||||||
| ( Günther , 1864) |
Astatheros macracanthus ( Syn. : Amphilophus macracanthus , Cichlasoma ever manni , C. Guija , C. Heterodontus ) is a species from the family of cichlids , which on the Pacific side of Central America from the Isthmus of Tehuantepec in southern Mexico ( Oaxaca ) to El Salvador found.
features
Astatheros macracanthus becomes a maximum of 25 cm long, with females remaining about 3 to 5 cm smaller, and has a typical, "beefy" cichlid shape. The specific epithet macracanthus ("macros" = large + "acanthos" = sting) refers to the strong spines in the dorsal and anal fin. The large mouth is strongly protruding (protractile), both jaws are covered with a band of velvety teeth consisting of several rows. The teeth in the first row are a little bigger than those in the back. The fish are greenish and show numerous shiny, mother-of-pearl-colored, small spots and a dark stripe pattern on the sides of the body. During the breeding season, the stripes turn deep black and the basic color of the fish turns white.
Way of life
Astatheros macracanthus lives in flowing streams and rivers without vegetation and feeds on small fish, insects and their larvae, on freshwater sponges, thread algae and on higher water plants. It reproduces from April to August and is an open breeder that produces large clutches.
Systematics
The species was described in 1864 by the German zoologist Albert Günther as Heros macracanthus , but later assigned to the genus Cichlasoma . In 1904 the French ichthyologist Jacques Pellegrin described the subgenus Astatheros with Cichlasoma macracanthus as the type species . 1966 Astatheros with the genus Amphilophus synonymised . However, phylogenetic studies suggest that the genus Astatheros is valid as a sister genus of Rocio . In April 2016, the genus Astatheros was revalidated by a group of Czech ichthyologists with Astatheros macracanthus as the only species.
literature
- Horst Linke, Wolfgang Staek: American cichlids II, large cichlids. Tetra-Verlag, Bissendorf 1997, ISBN 3-89745-101-8 , pp. 475-476.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Kullander, SO & K. E. Hartel (1997): The systematic status of cichlid genera described by Louis Agassiz in 1859: Amphilophus, Baiodon, Hypsophrys and Parachromis (Teleostei: Cichlidae). Ichthyological Exploration of Freshwaters v. 7 (no. 3): 193-202.
- ↑ Říĉan, O., R. Zardoya and I. Doadria 2008: Phylogenetic relationships of Middle America cichlids (Cichlidae, Heroini) based on combined evidence from nuclear genes, mtDNA, and morphology. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution v. 49: 941-957.
- ↑ Říčan, O., Piálek, L., Dragová, K. & Novák, J. (2016): Diversity and evolution of the Middle American cichlid fishes (Teleostei: Cichlidae) with revised classification . Vertebrate Zoology, 66 (1): 1-102.
Web links
- Astatheros macracanthus on Fishbase.org (English)