Cryptoheros
| Cryptoheros | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Cryptoheros | ||||||||||||
| Allgayer , 2001 |
Cryptoheros is a genus of cichlid found in Central America in the eastern Yucatan and on the Caribbean side of Guatemala and Honduras .
features
Cryptoheros species have a relatively stocky body with a short tail and are thus adapted to life in stagnant and poorly flowing water. They become a maximum of 12 centimeters long (females stay smaller). Characteristic of the genus is the pattern with dark horizontal stripes on the sides of the body, a feature that Cryptoheros shares with the closely related genera Amatitlania , Hypsophrys and Neetroplus . Compared to Amatitlania , Cryptoheros species have one more crossbar on the sides of the body. In Cryptoheros, the fifth band is usually divided into two, and the back branch of the fifth band is most heavily pigmented and significantly darker than the others. In young fish of Amatitlania and the adults of most species, the fourth band is the darkest. Compared to Hypsophrys and Neetroplus , the Cryptoheros species are stockier (more adapted to life in still waters) and have fewer vertebrae and scales in the longitudinal direction. The Cryptoheros species differ from Archocentrus in their sexual dimorphism in terms of size and color, the rounded snout (slightly tapered in Archocentrus ) and a laterally less flattened body.
The mouth is small and the teeth in the lower jaw are perpendicular to the body axis; both are considered typical of species that feed on detritivor or herbivorous diet. The lower jaw is just as long or shorter than the upper jaw. The jaw teeth are conical and pointed with a labiolingual flattened tip. The teeth of the second and third rows of teeth are relatively large. The head morphology is shared by Cryptoheros with Amatitlania and Hypsophrys and in combination with some characteristics regarding the unpaired fins it is unique among the Central American cichlids. These include an increased number of anal pterygiophores from the first hemalia (2 to 3), an increased number of anal spines (7 to 9) compensated by a decreased number of anal soft rays (less than 8) and an increased number of caudal rays (17 to 19) .
Systematics
The genus Cryptoheros was introduced in 2001 by the French ichthyologist Robert Allgayer. The type species is the blue-eyed cichlid ( Cryptoheros spilurus ). Within the Heronini, the genus Cryptoheros belongs to the Amphilophines (closer relationship to Amphilophus ) and forms a trichotomy with Amatitlania and a clade formed by Hypsophrys and Neetroplus .
species
The genus Cryptoheros currently only consists of three species. The five species of the former subgenus Bussingius now belong to Amatitlania and Bussingius was synonymous with Amatitlania . The subgenus Panamius is now considered an independent genus.
- Cryptoheros chetumalensis Schmitter-Soto, 2007
- Burgundy cichlid ( Cryptoheros cutteri (Fowler, 1932) )
- Blue-eyed cichlid ( Cryptoheros spilurus (Günther, 1862) ) ( type species )
literature
- 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.
Individual evidence
- ^ Robert Allgayer (2001): Description d'un genre nouveau, Cryptoheros , d'Amerique central et d'une espece nouvelle du Panama (Pisces: Cichlidae). L'an Cichlidé v. 1: 13-20.
Web links
- Cryptoheros on Fishbase.org (English)