MZUSP 117108, 67.9 mm SL, holotype of Moenkhausia lineomaculata, Brazil, Mato Grosso State, Campos de Júlio, rio Juruena, upper rio Tapajós basin. © Fernando C. P. Dagosta

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Characidium kamakan, holotype, MZUSP 115000, 51.9 mm SL, Brazil, Bahia, Camacan, rio Panelão, tributary of
lower rio Pardo basin. © A. M. Zanata

The Crenuchidae is a characiform family which contains some well-known aquarium fishes, including the sailfin characin, Crenuchus spilurus, and black darter tetra, Poecilocharax weitzmani. It also includes the genus Characidium, a group sometimes referred to as ‘darter characins’ which are invariably identified as the species Characidium fasciatum in hobbyist literature.

In reality, the name C. fasciatum has been repeatedly misapplied. Characidium is the most speciose assemblage within the Crenuchidae with at least 15 members having been described since the turn of the century. Three new studies, published within days of each other, have now increased the total of known species to more than 60 with the description of four new species from disparate regions of Brazil.

Characidium nana, holotype, MPEG 31838, 21.5 mm SL, from Rio 13 de Maio, approximately 40 km from Castelo dos Sonhos, Pará, Brazil. © M. J. Sturaro

Characidium nana Mendonça & Netto-Ferreira 2015 is described from a handful of localities within the rio Xingu and rio Tapajós systems in northern Brazil. It can be distinguished from all congeners, except C. bahiense, C. interruptum, C. laterale, C. mirim, C. nupelia, C. rachovii, C. stigmosum and C. xavante by possessing a short, incomplete lateral line, and by lacking both the inner dentary series of teeth and parietal branch of the supraorbital laterosensory canal. It can be told apart from C. bahiense, C. interruptum, C. laterale and C. rachvoii by the absence (vs. presence) of an adipose fin; from Characidium mirim and C. stigmosum by the presence (vs. absence) of a conspicuous dark blotch on the caudal peduncle; from C. nupelia and C. xavante by possession of a broad, conspicuous (vs. narrow, inconspicuous) dark midlateral stripe. In addition, it differs from C. xavante by the presence of 12 (vs. 10) circumpeduncular scales.

It is named in honour of Mariana Barreira Mendonça, the first author’s sister, and appears to be a member of the ‘C4’ clade within the genus as proposed by Buckup (1993).

Characidium summus (a), holotype, MZUSP 116954, 34.5 mm SL, rio Pacaás Novos, tributary of rio Mamoré, Rondônia, Brazil. Lateral view of Erythrinus erythrinus (b) collected with C. summus, UFRO-I 23294, 33.7 mm SL, showing colour pattern. © A. M. Zanata/B. Barros

C. summus Zanata & Ohara 2015 is known only from the upper rio Pacaás Novos, a tributary of the rio Mamoré within the rio Madeira basin, Rondônia State, western Brazil. It can be distinguished from all congeners by the following combination of characters: adipose fin absent; lateral line complete; no dark bars or spots on the head, body or fins, with the exception of a dark blotch immediately posterior to the opercle; dark midlateral strip narrow (less than half a scale deep); a dark spot at the base of the caudal-fin.

Its name is derived from the Latin summus, meaning ‘high, elevated’, in reference to the type locality being located more than 1100 m above sea level. The new species does not fit into any previously proposed species group within the genus and exhibits a number of unique characters, among them a potentially mimetic relationship with the red wolf fish, Erythrinus erythrinus.

Type locality of Characidium kamakan, Bahia, Camacan, rio Panelão, lower rio Pardo basin. © A. M. Zanata

C. kamakan Zanata & Camelier 2015 was collected from the rios Água Preta and Panelão, both tributaries within the lower rio Pardo basin, Bahia State, eastern Brazil. It is primarily distinguished from congeners by its unique colour pattern, characterised by distinct black borders of the scales forming short vertical markings on the body. In addition, it can be further told apart from similar-looking species by: absence of scales on the anteriormost portion of the isthmus; absence of conspicuous vertically elongated bars or blotches on the body; presence of a distinct black blotch on the centre of the caudal-fin rays shaped like a figure 3; presence of an unpigmented, rounded area near the base of each caudal-fin lobe; all fins with conspicuous dark bars or blotches; presence of a small foramen for the ophthalmic nerve bordered by a well-developed bony crest.

It is named for the indigenous Kamakã people who originally inhabited the area from which it was discovered, and it potentially belongs to the ‘C1’ clade of Buckup (1993).

Characidium deludens, holotype, MZUSP 115009, 48.3 mm SL, female, Brazil, Bahia, Piatã, rio Cochó, tributary of upper rio Paraguaçu basin: (a) lateral and (b) dorsal views. © A. M. Zanata

C. deludens Zanata & Camelier 2015 is currently known from the rios Cochó andSanto Antônio in the upper rio Paraguaçu basin, Bahia State, eastern Brazil. It can also be identified by its colour pattern, comprising dark irregular blotches on the dorsal surface which extend alternately to the flanks and do not usually connect to the lateral blotches on the sides of the body. It is further distinguished from Brazilian congeners by the following combination of characters: isthmus completely scaled; lateral line complete; 14 circumpeduncular scales; adipose-fin present; 1-2 scales between anus and anal-fin origin; 35-37 lateral line scales; 5 series of scales between lateral line and pelvic-fin origin; region between pelvic and anal fins straight; no sexually dimorphic differences in colour pattern; parietal branch of supraorbital canal present; a single series of 6-10 dentary teeth; premaxilla with 5-7 teeth; a faded dark bar on proximal portion of the dorsal-fin; presence of dark markings on ventral portion of body and a narrow dark midlateral stripe.

The name C. deludens is derived from the Latin delude, meaning ‘false’, in reference to the “deceitful” alternating vertical bars on the body. Like C. summus, it does not appear to belong to any previously proposed species group within the genus.

Matt Ford

For further information, see the following:

Mendonça, M. B. and A. L. Netto-Ferreira, 2015. New species of Characidium (Characiformes: Crenuchidae) from the Rio Tapajós and Rio Xingu drainages, Pará, Brazil. Zootaxa 4021(1): 187-194. [Link to abstract only]

Zanata, A. M. and W. M. Ohara, 2015. A new species of Characidium Reinhardt (Ostariophysi: Characiformes: Crenuchidae) from headwaters of rio Pacaás Novos, rio Madeira basin, Rondônia, Brazil. Zootaxa 4021(2): 367-376. [Link to abstract only]

Zanata, A. M. and P. Camelier, 2015. Two new species of Characidium Reinhardt (Characiformes: Crenuchidae) from northeastern Brazilian coastal drainages. Neotropical Ichthyology 13(3): 487-498. [Full, open access paper]

Additional reference:

Buckup, P. A., 1993. Phylogenetic Interrelationships and Reductive Evolution in Neotropical Characidiin Fishes (Characiformes: Ostariophysi). Cladistics 9(3): 305-341.

Thanks to Marina B. Mendonça and Angela M. Zanata.

Theraps intermedius © Lee Nuttall

An extensive review of the herichthyin clade of Middle American cichlids has resulted in the naming of eight new genera and a number of taxonomic modifications.

The herichthyins are a group of 45 cichlid species contained within the larger Heroni tribe of the Cichlinae subfamily. They are mostly distributed in Mexico and Guatemala and contain a number of aquarium favourites. Generic placement for a number of them has long been considered uncertain, however, with conflicting taxonomic designations having been proposed in a number of cases. In others, species have remained in the catch-all genus Cichlasoma or the placeholder ‘Cichlasoma’ incertae sedis.

In the new study, published last week in the journal ‘Zootaxa’, ichthyologist Caleb McMahan and collaborators compiled DNA sequence data and evaluated morphological characters from various earlier studies. The results were analysed alongside physical examination of specimens in order to support hypotheses and potentially obtain new diagnostic characters.

As a results, existing herichthyin groupings were rediagnosed, and new genera proposed based on genetic and morphological differentiation.

The herichthyins thus now comprise the following genera. Please note that only the principal defining characters for each grouping are included here, and that in all cases the first species listed is the type species:

Vieja maculicauda, type species of the genus. © Štefan Zelinka

Vieja Fernández-Yépez 1969 includes the type species V. maculicauda plus V. bifasciata, V. breidohri, V. fenestrata, V. guttulata, V. hartwegi, V. melanura, and V. zonata. These species are distinguished from most other herichthyins by possession of a large blotch covering the majority of the caudal peduncle, which extends anteriorly as a dark stripe in all members except V. maculicauda. They have all recently been included in the genus Paraneetroplus.

Maskaheros argenteus ©Unimati.dk

Maskaheros McMahan and Piller 2015 is a new genus containing M. argenteus and M. regani, which have previously been included in both Vieja and Paraneetroplus. The primary diagnostic characters are the presence of small, dark, irregular spots on the entire body and two broad dark interorbital bars.

Paraneetroplus gibbiceps © Lee Nuttall

Paraneetroplus Regan 1905 is now restricted to contain only P. bulleri, P. gibbiceps, and P. nebuliferus. These taxa differ from other herichthyins by the elongate body and caudal peduncle, and narrow, sub-terminal mouth.

Herichthys cyanoguttatus © Štefan Zelinka

A reduced Herichthys Baird and Girard 1954 includes H. cyanoguttatus, H. carpintis, H. deppii, H. minckleyi, H. tamasopoensis, H. tepehua, H. teporatus. They are diagnosed by possession of 6-7 vertical body bars which are often grouped in the posterior portion of the body, and a series of dark blotches below the upper lateral line.

Nosferatu molango © Mauricio De la Maza Benignos

Nosferatu De la Maza-Benignos et al. 2015 was raised in a study published earlier this year. It contains N. pame, N. bartoni, N. labridens, N. molango, N. pantostictus, N. pratinus, and N. steindachneri, all former members of Herichthys. They are diagnosed by possessing a relatively elongate body with variable, irregular stripes or blotches laterally, and conical unicuspid teeth in the anteriormost portion of the upper jaw.

Theraps godmanni © Lee Nuttall

Theraps Günther 1862 has also been reorganised and now comprises T. irregularis, T. godmanni, T. intermedius, T. microphthalmus, and T. nourissati. These are distinguished from other herichthyins by having bodies that are longer than deep, a small subterminal mouth, an upper jaw that extends beyond the lower, and spots on the unpaired fins.

Kihnichthys ufermanni © Mo Devlin

Kihnichthys McMahan and Matamoros 2015 is the second new genus raised in the paper and is monotypic, containing only K. ufermanni, a former member of both Vieja and Theraps. It is chiefly distinguished by presence of a dark blotch on the centre of the caudal peduncle base, and spatulate or chisel-like teeth in the anterior portions of both jaws.

Cincelichthys bocourti © Unimati.dk

The third new genus Cincelichthys McMahan and Piller 2015 includes C. bocourti and C. pearsei, both of which have most recently been considered members of Theraps. They are diagnosed by possessing spatulate, chisel-shaped teeth plus very deep, rounded to oval-shaped bodies with wide, irregular bars formed by black scales, and a small black spot in the centre of the caudal peduncle base.

A young individual of Rheoheros lentiginosus © Florent De Gasperis

Rheoheros McMahan and Matamoros 2015 is another new taxon, and contains R. lentiginosus and R. coeruleus, both formerly placed in Theraps. It is is principally diagnosed by a unique colour pattern of dark blotches and/or bars on an elongate body.

Oscura heterospila © Unimati.dk

Oscura McMahan and Chakrabarty 2015 is a new monotypic genus raised for the species formerly referred to as Theraps heterospilus, which now becomes O. heterospila. It is diagnosed by the combination of a round or oblong-shaped dark blotch occupying most or all of the caudal peduncle, plus small black spots the sides of the body.

Chiapaheros grammodes © Štefan Zelinka

Chiapaheros McMahan and Piller 2015 is another new, monotypic taxon containing C. grammodes. It is distinguished by presence of several, typically 7, thin dark lines on the sides of the head, plus an elongated predorsal profile and head.

Thorichthys ellioti, type species of the genus, is currently regarded as a synonym of T. maculipinnis. © Robert Smith

Thorichthys Meek 1904 consists of T. ellioti, T. affinis, T. aureus, T. callolepis, T. helleri, T. meeki, T. pasionis, T. socolofi. The authors note that T. ellioti, the type species, is currently regarded as a synonym of T. maculipinnis, and that further work is required to assess its taxonomic validity. Members of this genus are readily distinguished from all other herichthyins by possession five (versus four) mandibular pores along the dentary. They are also relatively small in overall size, have an elongate angular head profile, and a small terminal mouth.

Mesoheros festae © Enrico Richter

New genus Mesoheros McMahan and Chakrabarty 2015 contains the South American species M. festae, M. atromaculatus, and M. ornatus, all previously assigned to Cichlasoma. They are diagnosed by possessing an elongate body with 7 (rarely 6) dark spots or bars laterally, and a moderately small mouth that does not reach the anterior margin of the orbit.

Tomocichla tuba © Lee Nuttall

Tomocichla Regan 1908 now contains only T. tuba and T. asfraci. They are distinguished by the combination of compressed conical teeth in the anterior upper jaw, and dorsal and anal fins with markedly rounded posterior margins.

Herotilapia multispinosa © Unimati.dk

The monotypic Herotilapia Pellegrin 1904 is revalidated and contains H. multispinosa, unique among herichthyins in possessing tricuspid teeth.

Trichromis salvini © Ryan O’Donnell

Trichromis McMahan and Chakrabarty 2015 is another new, monotypic taxon and contains T. salvini, formerly Cichlasoma salvini. It is easily distinguished from other herichthyins by possession of two dark lateral stripes in the upper portion of the body.

‘Cichlasoma’ sieboldi © Unimati.dk

‘C.’ tuyrense and ‘C.’ sieboldii are retained in ‘Cichlasoma’ incertae sedis since they are not closely related to the herichthyins despite former generic placements in Vieja and Tomocichla, respectively.

Matt Ford

For further information see the full paper (link to abstract only): McMahan, C. D., W. A. Matamoros, K. R. Piller and P. Chakrabarty, 2015. Taxonomy and systematics of the herichthyins (Cichlidae: Tribe Heroini), with the description of eight new Middle American Genera. Zootaxa 3999(2): 211-234.

Additional references:

López-Fernández, H., K. O. Winemiller and R. L. Honeycutt, 2010. Multilocus phylogeny and rapid radiations in Neotropical cichlid fishes
(Perciformes: Cichlidae: Cichilinae). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 55(3): 1070-1086.

McMahan, C. D., A. D. Geheber and K. R. Piller, 2010. Molecular systematics of the enigmatic Middle American genus Vieja (Teleostei: Cichlidae). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 57(3): 1293-1300.

De la Maza-Benignos, M., C. P. Ornelas-García, M. de Lourdes Lozano-Vilano, M. E. García-Ramírez and I. Doadrio, 2015. Phylogeographic analysis of genus Herichthys (Perciformes: Cichlidae), with descriptions of Nosferatu new genus and H. tepehua n. sp. Hydrobiologia 748(1): 201-231.

Thanks to Lee Nuttall, Mo Devlin, Mauricio De la Maza Benignos and regular contributors Enrico, Štefan, Ryan, Robert, and Unimati.dk for use of images.

Stefan van der Voort reports on some new discoveries…

Badis andrewraoi © Stefano Valdesalici

Two studies published recently in the journal Zootaxa have revealed five new species of Badis. These works significantly increased the species richness of the genus in West Bengal, India, and hopefully pave the way for further exploration of that and surrounding areas.

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© Nora Brede

The snakehead that has been known to aquarium hobbyists as Channa sp. ‘Assam’, C. sp. ‘Lal Cheng’ or C. sp. ‘blue bleheri’ for a number of years is named C. andrao in the journal ‘Zootaxa’ this week. Continue reading »

Adult male individual of Dario kajal spec. nov. © Andreas Werth

The previously unidentified badid known to aquarists as Dario sp. ‘Jaintia Hills’ or D. sp. ‘Bangladesh’ is described by ichthyologists Dr. Ralf Britz and Dr. Sven Kullander in today’s issue of ‘Zootaxa’. Continue reading »

© Rudolf Pohlmann

A new species of the genus Aphyosemion has been described in the journal ‘Zootaxa’. Continue reading »

H. fasciata exists in a number of colour forms © Hayath

Regular readers will remember that the species formerly known as Puntius fasciatus plus its closest relatives were placed into the new genus Dravidia a few months ago as part of Continue reading »

Preserved specimens of R. dusonensis (top) and R. tornieri (bottom), both collected from the Sungai (river) Gelam, Sumatra © Ng & Kottelat

The identities of both species have been unclear for a number of decades but are resolved in a new paper by ichthyologists Heok Hee Ng and Maurice Kottelat published in the journal ‘Zootaxa’ last week. Continue reading »

K. vitreolus is well-known to aquarists but has been misidentified for at least 80 years. © Unimati.dk

Over the last few decades the aquarium glass catfish has generally been referred to as Kryptopterus bicirrhis or, more recently, K. minor in both aquarium and scientific literature, but a new paper by Drs. Heok Hee Ng and Maurice Kottelat reveals that this popular species has in fact been misidentified for over eighty years. Continue reading »