Günther's magnificent perch

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Günther's magnificent perch
Pair with young fish, the female is on the left (recognizable by the color of the abdomen and the silvery stripe in the dorsal fin).

Pair with young fish, the female is on the left (recognizable by the color of the abdomen and the silvery stripe in the dorsal fin).

Systematics
Order : Cichliformes
Family : Cichlids (Cichlidae)
Subfamily : Pseudocrenilabrinae
Tribe : Chromidotilapiini
Genre : Chromidotilapia
Type : Günther's magnificent perch
Scientific name
Chromidotilapia guntheri
( Sauvage , 1882)

Günther's magnificent perch ( Chromidotilapia guntheri ) is a species of cichlid from West Africa. It occurs in coastal fresh waters from the Saint John River in Liberia to Niger , in the lakes of the West Cameroon mountains north of the Sanaga and in the Mbini River (formerly Benito ) in Equatorial Guinea . The species was named in honor of the German zoologist and ichthyologist Albert Günther .

features

Günther's magnificent perch is 12 to 18 cm long, with the maximum length of 18 cm only occurring in stately males from the west of the distribution area (Ivory Coast, Ghana, Togo), females rarely exceeding 15 cm and animals from Nigeria usually with a length of 12 cm stay. The fish have an elongated, laterally somewhat flattened body and a sharp-mouthed head. The body height is approx. 30 to 40% of the standard length . The belly line is almost straight. The sides of the body are gray-brown to olive-green or yellowish and have a bluish shimmer, the back is darker. Two more or less clearly visible longitudinal stripes extend along the sides of the body, which are particularly clear in stressed animals or, depending on the mood, can be replaced by five blurred spots or a uniform color. The upper stripe lies directly below the dorsal fin and extends to its end. The second extends from the eye to the center of the caudal peduncle. The lips are whitish or bluish. There is a bright, blue-green glossy spot on the gill cover. On the first gill arch there are 21 to 25 gill rakes . In adult animals, some of the rays of the dorsal and anal fin are elongated; in juvenile fish (up to 2.5 cm) the first two to three rays of the dorsal fin are black. The tail stalk is usually higher than it is long. The caudal fin just ends.

Günther's magnificent perch, female

Females have a whitish throat, a dark red belly at spawning maturity and in the dorsal fin, below the red edge of the fin (also in males), a bright chrome-shining longitudinal band, often black spots on the dorsal fin base.

Chromidotilapia guentheri loennbergi

A separate endemic subspecies of Günther's magnificent perch, Chromidotilapia guentheri loennbergi , occurs in the Cameroonian crater lake Barombi Koto and in the immediate vicinity. It is lighter in color than other Chromidotilapia guentheri from neighboring regions and is more similar in color to Linkes Prachtbarsch ( Chromidotilapia linkei ). It often has only 14 scales around the caudal peduncle, while 16 are common for Chromidotilapia species. With a maximum length of 8.1 cm, it remains smaller than the nominate shape .

Habitat and way of life

Günther's magnificent perch lives in the west of its range in smaller and larger rivers and lakes in savannah areas. The water there is usually hard and slightly alkaline . The fish become relatively large. From East Nigeria to South Cameroon, the fish live in small and very small rainforest waters with often very acidic, soft and clean water. The fish from rainforest areas stay smaller.

In the short rivers that flow into the Bosumtwisee in Ghana, there is a morph that is maximally 10 to 12 cm long, has a pointed head and a partially yellow colored iris . The fish are washed into the lake in large quantities during the rainy season, but cannot be detected there during the dry season and apparently not viable in the lake in the long term.

Reproduction

Günther's magnificent perch is a mouthbrooder , which, unlike most other mouthbrooders, is monogamous during the spawning season and forms tight pairs. The up to 150 eggs are laid in caves, on stones or some other solid surface and then taken into the mouth by the male. The fry leave their mouths for the first time after 8 to 14 days. Afterwards they are led and protected by both parents for several weeks and, in case of danger, also taken in the mouth by the female.

literature

  • Horst Linke, Wolfgang Staeck: African cichlids I, cichlids from West Africa. Tetra-Verlag, Bissendorf 1997, ISBN 3-89356-151-X .
  • Anton Lamboj : Chromidotilapia guntheri (Sauvage, 1892). In: Claus Schaefer, Torsten Schröer (Hrsg.): The large lexicon of aquaristics. Eugen Ulmer, Stuttgart 2004, ISBN 3-8001-7497-9 , p. 229 f.
  • Günther Sterba : The world's freshwater fish. 2nd Edition. Urania, Leipzig / Jena / Berlin 1990, ISBN 3-332-00109-4 .
  • Melanie Stiassny, Guy Teugels & Carl D. Hopkins: The Fresh and Brackish Water Fishes of Lower Guinea, West-Central Africa, Volume 2 ISBN 978-9074-7522-06

Web links