Congochromis dimidiatus

Congochromis dimidiatus
Congochromis dimidiatus , pair from the vicinity of Lake Mai-Ndombe with juvenile fish.
Systematics
Order : Cichliformes Family : Cichlids (Cichlidae) Subfamily : Pseudocrenilabrinae Tribe : Chromidotilapiini Genre : Congochromis Type : Congochromis dimidiatus
Scientific name
Congochromis dimidiatus
( Pellegrin , 1900)

Congochromis dimidiatus is a species of fish from the family of cichlids (Cichlidae), which occurs in Central Africa in the Congo Basin and in the area of ​​the Upper Shari .

features

Congochromis dimidiatus reaches a standard length of 6 to 7 cm, with females remaining slightly smaller. The species has an elongated body with a rounded snout and caudal fin. The basic color of Congochromis dimidiatus is usually gray-brown. In some individuals or populations from the very large distribution area there is also a red coloration of the back and the anal fin, in exceptional cases the entire body. In the case of inferior fish or fish that have no territory or, depending on the mood, two dark longitudinal bands or dark rows of dots can be visible on the sides of the body. Females ready to spawn have a yellow-orange color of the abdomen and show a silver-white stripe in the dorsal fin. In the males, the soft-rayed sections of the dorsal and anal fin are slightly higher and they always show rows of bright spots there and on the caudal fin. The dorsal fin is supported by 17 hard rays and 7 soft rays, the anal fin has 6 soft rays.

Reproduction

Congochromis dimidiatus is a substrate spawner with a strong pair bond. The walls of caves and crevices, leaves of living plants or dead foliage on the bottom of the water serve as a spawning substrate. A clutch usually contains 50 to 100 eggs. Eggs and larvae are mainly taken care of by the female. The male takes part in the guarding of the free swimming juvenile fish.

Systematics

The cichlid species was first scientifically described in 1900 by the French ichthyologist Jacques Pellegrin under the name Pelmatochromis dimidiatus . With the introduction of the genus Nanochromis in 1904, which, among other things by an elevated sidelines of Pelmatochromis different and other West African cichlid, by the same author came the way of Nanochromis . In the 1960s, small reddish cichlids that the fish importer Brichard had brought to Europe were called Nanochromis dimidiatus . However, it was a hitherto undescribed species under the trade name Nanochromis sp. “Makoua” received. These fish disappeared again from the European aquariums in the following years. In the second half of the 1980s, small reddish cichlids were imported again, which were suspected to be Nanochromis dimidiatus , but which were later identified as Nanochromis squamiceps (now Congochromis squamiceps ). Nanochromis sp. “Makoua” was scientifically described for the first time in 2005 under the name Congochromis sabinae . As the British ichthyologist Peter Humphry Greenwood noted, two groups can be clearly distinguished within the genus Nanochromis . One group has a gray or bluish basic color and occasionally shows dark transverse bands, the other has a dark longitudinal stripe and shows a clear gender dimorphism. In 2007, the American ichthyologist Melanie Stiassny and her colleague Ulrich K. Schliewen introduced the genus Congochromis for the second group , to which Nanochromis dimidiatus was also placed.

supporting documents

1. ↑ ^{a b c d e} Anton Lamboj: The cichlids of western Africa. Publisher: Natur und Tier, 2006, ISBN 386-659000-8 , pages 135 u. 136.
2. ↑ ^{a b} Congochromis dimidiatus on Fishbase.org (English)
3. ^ Anton Lamboj. 2005. Nanochromis sabinae, a new cichlid species (Teleostei, Cichlidae) from the Upper Congo River area and Northeast Gabon. Zootaxa 827: 1-11. ISSN  1175-5326 PDF
4. ↑ Melanie LJ Stiassny & Ulrich K. Schliewen: Congochromis, a New Cichlid Genus (Teleostei: Cichlidae) from Central Africa, with the Description of a New Species from the Upper Congo River, Democratic Republic of Congo. American Museum Novitates Number 3576: 1-14. 2007 doi : 10.1206 / 0003-0082 (2007) 3576 [1: CANCGT] 2.0.CO; 2