Aphyosemion ecucuense Sonnenberg 2007

A.ecucuense GEMLBJ 03 / 47. Photo courtesy of Werner Eigelshofen.

Meaning of Name

After the Rio Ecucu.
First Description

Sonnenberg R. 2007.

Two new species of Chromaphyosemion (Cyprinodontiformes: Nothobranchiidae) from the coastal plain of Equatorial Guinea.

Ichthyol. Explor.Freshwaters, Vol. 18, No. 4, pp. 359-373, 7 figs, 4 tabs, December 2007.
Size

Holotype - Male, 27·8 mm SL.
Meristics

Karyotype
  • Scheel's EC strain - 2n=26 - Scheel 1974
Sub-Genus

Chromaphyosemion
Group

Synonyms
  • Aphyosemion bivittatum (non Lönnberg 1895), Roman 1971
  • Aphyosemion bitaeniatum (non Ahl 1924), Scheel 1990
  • Aphyosemion splendopleure (non Brüning 1929), Huber 2000
  • Aphyosemion aff. splendopleure Huber 2000
  • Chromaphyosemion sp. Rio Muni Pohlmann 2006
  • Chromaphyosemion malumbresi Sonnenberg 2007
  • Aphyosemion (Chromaphyosemion) malumbresi Legros & Zentz 2007

Populations

  • GEMLBJ 03 / 42
  • GEMLBJ 03 / 47
  • GEMHS 00 / 25
  • GEMHS 00 / 26

GEMLBJ 03 / 42. Photo courtesy of Werner Eigelshofen.

 

 
   
  • GEMLBJ 03 / 42 - Rio Ecucu Basin. Found in a river near Bicomo.
  • GEMLBJ 03 / 47 - Rio Ecucu Basin. Found in a creek crossing the road from Bata - Niefang near Machinda.
Type Locality

Distribution

Northwestern Equatorial Guinea within the middle & upper Rio Ecucu drainage.
Habitat

Distinguishing Characteristics This species is part of a small group comprising A.kouamense, A.malumbresi, A.melanogaster & A.erythron that have red dots in all unpaired fins. These rarely join.
A.ecucuense can be seperated from others in this group by an orange to copper body colour which is blue to bluish in A.malumbresi, greenish in A.melanogaster, light blue background with rows of red dots in A.erythron & blue with anteriorly reddish to orange in A.kouamense. In A.ecucuense the anal fin is orange whereas A.puctulatum & A.erythron has an anal fin colouration predominantly green.
Colour/Pattern Variability
History

Holotypes were collected 36 km east of Bata, Rio Ecucu Basin by J.J.Scheel February 1968.
Later collected by Malumbres et al. 7th July 2000 at Ncomedyi ( GEMHS 00 / 25 ).
Collected 19th April 2003 ( GEMLBJ 03 / 36 ) in a creek at Nfua crossing the Bata - Niefang road near kilometer point 36 near the village of Acassi.
Collected 20th April 2003 ( GEMLBJ 03 / 42 ) Near power plant at Bicomo.
Collected 22nd April 2003 ( GEMLBJ 03 / 47 ) in a creek crossing the Bata - Niefang road at kilometer point 26, near Machinda

Breeding Notes

Diameter of Egg
Remarks

Referenced material for this page from first description kindly supplied by Rainer Sonnenberg.