Placidochromis
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Placidochromis phenochilus , male |
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| Eccles & Trewavas , 1989 |
Placidochromis ( Latin : placidus = peaceful + chromis a genus of damselfish in which cichlids were previously classified) is a genus of African cichlids (Cichlidae). In nature they live exclusively in Lake Malawi (which is called Lake Nyassa in Tanzania and Mozambique ) and belongs to the Great Rift Valley. The genus does not belong to the Mbuna , thecichlids boundto the biotope of the rocky coasts.
features
Placidochromis species are 6 to 20 centimeters long and resemble the species of the genera Aulonocara in their body shape . The genus is probably not a natural related group, so it is not monophyletic . Species were included in it which, in their black basic pigmentation, which is best recognizable in young fish and females, have clear transverse stripes and which lack horizontal stripes. In the sexually mature males, this basic pigmentation is overlaid by a bright, bright color. The pattern of the basic pigmentation is used for classification, as it is assumed that this pattern is little influenced by environmental factors and thus shows a phylogenetic relationship, in contrast to morphological features, such as the teeth, which have changed significantly due to the rapid evolution of the Malawi cichlids . Like almost all cichlids in Lake Malawi, the Placidochromis species are ovophilic mouthbrooders .
species
There are currently 43 known species:
- Placidochromis acuticeps Hanssens, 2004
- Placidochromis acutirostris Hanssens, 2004
- Placidochromis argyrogaster Hanssens, 2004
- Placidochromis boops Hanssens, 2004
- Placidochromis borealis Hanssens, 2004
- Placidochromis chilolae Hanssens, 2004
- Placidochromis communis Hanssens, 2004
- Placidochromis domirae Hanssens, 2004
- Placidochromis ecclesi Hanssens, 2004
- Placidochromis electra (Burgess, 1979)
- Placidochromis elongatus Hanssens, 2004
- Placidochromis fuscus Hanssens, 2004
- Placidochromis hennydaviesae (Burgess & Axelrod, 1973)
- Placidochromis intermedius Hanssens, 2004
- Placidochromis johnstoni (Günther, 1894)
- Placidochromis koningsi Hanssens, 2004
- Placidochromis lineatus Hanssens, 2004
- Placidochromis longimanus (Trewavas, 1935)
- Placidochromis longirostris Hanssens, 2004
- Placidochromis longus Hanssens, 2004
- Placidochromis lukomae Hanssens, 2004
- Placidochromis macroceps Hanssens, 2004
- Placidochromis macrognathus Hanssens, 2004
- Placidochromis mbunoides Hanssens, 2004
- Placidochromis milomo Oliver, 1989
- Placidochromis minor Hanssens, 2004
- Placidochromis minutus Hanssens, 2004
- Placidochromis msakae Hanssens, 2004
- Placidochromis nigribarbis Hanssens, 2004
- Placidochromis nkhatae Hanssens, 2004
- Placidochromis nkhotakotae Hanssens, 2004
- Placidochromis obscurus Hanssens, 2004
- Placidochromis ordinarius Hanssens, 2004
- Placidochromis orthognathus Hanssens, 2004
- Placidochromis pallidus Hanssens, 2004
- Placidochromis phenochilus (Trewavas, 1935)
- Placidochromis platyrhynchos Hanssens, 2004
- Placidochromis polli (Burgess & Axelrod, 1973)
- Placidochromis rotundifrons Hanssens, 2004
- Placidochromis subocularis (Günther, 1894)
- Placidochromis trewavasae Hanssens, 2004
- Placidochromis turneri Hanssens, 2004
- Placidochromis vulgaris Hanssens, 2004
literature
- Andreas Spreinat: Lake Malawi cichlids from Tanzania. Unitext Verlag, 1994, ISBN 3-926142-42-1
Web links
- Placidochromis on Fishbase.org (English)