High sailfin
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High Sailfin ( Pterophyllum altum ) |
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| Pterophyllum altum | ||||||||||||
| Pellegrin , 1903 |
The high sailfish ( Pterophyllum altum ) is a cichlid from tropical South America. It is the largest of the currently three valid species of the angelfish genus .
Systematics
This cichlid , the genus of which the Swedish ichthyologist Sven O. Kullander places in the genus group ( tribe ) of the Heroini , was first scientifically described in 1903 by the French zoologist Jacques Pellegrin as Pterophyllum altum from the Rio Atabapo in Venezuela . Apart from confusion with the closely related Pterophyllum scalare , there are no synonyms . The generic name is a combination of pteron = fin, wing, sail and phyllum = leaf. The adjectivistic species name, altum , Latin "high", indicates the total height of the body.
Fin formula : Dorsal XI – XIII / 27–31, Anale VI / 28–32.
There are several transitional forms between the High Sailfish and the species complex Pterophyllum scalare . Paepke interpreted this as gradually changing gradations of characteristics of a series of contiguous populations within the entire distribution area ( cline ) and put the high sailfish as a subspecies to Pterophyllum scalare . His view, which was closely based on the concept of species coined by Mayr , was not recognized, however.
features
In contrast to its two sister species , the High Sailfish has significantly smaller and therefore considerably more flank scales (41 to 48 instead of a maximum of 39 for Pterophyllum scalare and 26 to 30 for Pterophyllum leopoldi ). It also has more fin rays than the other two species. Distinct distinguishing features from Pterophyllum scalare ( sensu lato ) are an even more distinctive saddle-like indentation in the forehead line and more pronounced vertical stripes, which continue clearly in the caudal fin. The species appears even more flattened due to its height. Tall sailfish reach a total length of about 20 centimeters and a body height of up to approximately 40 centimeters.
distribution
The holotype was caught in the Rio Atabapo in Venezuela . As far as we know today, the natural occurrence extends over the catchment areas of the upper reaches of the Orinoco and Rio Negro . Specimens from the area around the type locality differ in appearance from high sailing fins from eastern Colombia . Sailfish originating from the border triangle Brazil / Peru / Colombia, which are referred to in the literature as "Peru-Altum" ", belong to another as yet undescribed species.
ecology
The few investigated sites usually have a fine sandy bottom and are mostly free of real aquatic plants due to the high water temperatures (documented: 27 to 35 ° C) . The fish found in small groups stand over rocky areas or hide between dead wood or the bank vegetation. Shallow water is avoided. The fact that high sailfish are mostly found near the surface of the water is related to the diet. In the nutrient-poor ( electrical conductivity <25 µS / cm) and hostile environment ( pH value well below 5.5) of its habitats, approaching insects and insect larvae ( mosquito larvae ) breathing on the water surface represent a large part of its prey. Another important component of the Food is smaller fish.
The small social associations form pairs with a firm bond, which defend small breeding grounds and spawn openly on vertical substrates. As the parent family , both sex partners look after their brood, the larvae and the juvenile fish very intensively and for a long time. The offspring partly feed on the body's mucus and the skin of their parents.
Importance to humans
Tall sailfin fish are of no importance as food fish . As an aquarium fish, high sailfish are not only very popular, they are also glorified with many almost mythical attributes. This already begins with the date of the first import for the aquarium hobby, for which, starting with 1911, several dates are given. It is very likely that the aquarium fish dealer Heiko Bleher brought the first high sailfish to Europe in 1972. Since then, only a few lovers have succeeded in breeding. Like many tropical freshwater fish from very warm, acidic and nutrient-poor waters, high sailfish are an interesting field of work in parasitology .
Due to their prominent, unusual shape for fish, which they only share with fin leaves ( Monodactylidae ) and juvenile batfish ( Ephippidae ), photos and graphic representations of sailfins are repeatedly motifs in art and advertising.
literature
- Blanc, M. (1962): Catalog des types de Poissons de la famille des Cichlidae en collection au Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle. Bulletin du Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle (Série 2) v. 34 (no. 3): 202-227.
- Czapla, R. (1986): Environmentally-induced diseases in Pterophyllum altum (PELLEGRIN, 1903). DCG Information 17: 90-94.
- Paepke, H.-J. (2003): Segelflosser (2nd edition). Westarp Wissenschaften-Verlagsgesellschaft, Hohenwarsleben, ISBN 3-89432-845-2 .
- Pellegrin, J. (1903): Description de Cichlidés nouveaux de la collection du Muséum. Bulletin du Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle (Série 1) v. 9 (no. 3): 120-125.
- Reis, RE, SO Kullander & CJ Ferraris, Jr. (2003): Check list of the freshwater fishes of South and Central America . CLOFFSCA. 2003: i-xi +1-729.
- Schindler, I. (2003): Variation of the body height of Pterophyllum scalare (Schultze in Lichtenstein, 1823) (Telesotei: Labroidei: Cichlidae) . Zeitschrift für Fischkunde v. 6 (no. 1-2): 73-85.
- Stawikowski, R. & U. Werner (1998): Die Buntbarsche Amerikas, Vol. 1. Verlag Eugen Ulmer, Stuttgart, ISBN 3-8001-7270-4 .
Web links
- High Sailfish on Fishbase.org (English)
- California Academy of Sciences fish catalog (in English)
- High sailfish at www.aquarium-guide.de