Champsochromis
| Champsochromis | ||||||||||||
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Champsochromis caeruleus |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Champsochromis | ||||||||||||
| Boulenger , 1908 |
Champsochromis (from Greek : "champsai" = crocodile + "Chromis" = genus ofdamselfish, in which cichlids were previously placed) is a genus from the family of cichlids (Cichlidae), which is found in Eastern Africa in Lake Malawi , partly as far as the Upper Shire River , occurs.
features
Champsochromis species are piscivore (fish-eating) predatory fish and reach lengths of about 30 to 32 cm and have a very elongated body, which makes them similar to the species of the genus Rhamphochromis . Their body length is 4 to 4½ times the body height, the number of vertebrae is 36 to 39. At the symphysis the premaxillary is widened like a beak. The teeth are single-pointed, those of the outer row are very large and widely spaced. Champsochromis species are silvery to bluish in color. A dark longitudinal stripe extends from the "nape" to the upper area of the tail peduncle. Like almost all cichlids in Lake Malawi, the Champsochromis species are mouthbrooders .
species
- Champsochromis caeruleus ( Boulenger , 1908)
- Champsochromis spilorhynchus ( Regan , 1922)
literature
- George Albert Boulenger , 1915. Catalog of the fresh-water fishes of Africa in the British Museum (Natural History). London. Volume 3 ( DOI: 10.5962 / bhl.title.8869 ), p. 433.
- Erwin Schraml: Champsochromis […]. In: Claus Schaefer, Torsten Schröer (Hrsg.): The large lexicon of aquaristics. Eugen Ulmer, Stuttgart 2004, ISBN 3-8001-7497-9 , pp. 207 f.
Web links
- Champsochromis on Fishbase.org (English)