Ptychochromoides

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Ptychochromoides
Ptychochromoides betsileanus

Ptychochromoides betsileanus

Systematics
without rank: Perch relatives (Percomorphaceae)
Ovalentaria
Order : Cichliformes
Family : Cichlids (Cichlidae)
Subfamily : Ptychochrominae
Genre : Ptychochromoides
Scientific name
Ptychochromoides
Kiener & Maugé , 1966

Ptychochromoides is a genus of cichlids thatis endemic to Madagascar .

features

Ptychochromoides species are relatively large and reach a length of about 30 cm. Your body is flattened on the sides, high back and covered with large comb scales. On the chest, the scales are small and embedded in the skin. They differ from all other Malagasy cichlids by a single row of teeth on the tooth plate of the second pharyngogobranchial and a tooth plate on the fourth ceratobranchial (both bones belong to the "pharyngeal jaw"). The Ceratobranchiale has grown together with the outer gill rake . The jaw teeth of the outer and inner rows of teeth consist of symmetrical, two-pointed teeth.

Way of life

All Ptychochromoides species live exclusively in the Central Madagascan highlands in the upper and middle reaches of the rivers. Your living waters are clear, rich in oxygen, relatively cool and have a sandy or stony bottom. The fish feed on aquatic insects and other invertebrates, on higher water plants and on algae. They are substrate spawners . Both parents take part in the brood care. After hatching, the fry are protected for a relatively long time. The breeding season lasts from October to December when the water level is lower.

species

Of the three species described, two are critically endangered. The third has not been caught in decades and has a high probability of becoming extinct.

literature

  • JS Spark: Ptychochromoides , page 875 in Steven M. Goodman, Jonathan P. Benstead, Harald Schütz: The Natural History of Madagascar , University of Chicago Press, ISBN 0-226-30307-1

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