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African Killifish Species
African Killifish

From a formal taxonomic perspective, the African killies break down this way, per Huber:

Killifish, the common name for oviparous cyprinodontiformes fishes, are currently classified into 10 families (Huber, 2005 : full details HERE):
  • Aplocheilidae, only from India and Madagascar;
  • Nothobranchiinae from Africa but Madagascar with 2 subfamilies: Nothobranchiinae and Epiplateinae;
  • Rivulidae from Central and South America with 3 subfamilies: Rivulinae, Cynolebiinae and Kryptolebiinae;
  • Fundulidae;
  • Profundulidae, monotypic (which may be included also in Fundulidae as a subfamily or in Goodeidae as a subfamily, depending on authors);
  • Goodeidae, with 2 subfamilies: Empetrichthyinae, oviparous and Goodeinae, viviparous;
  • Valenciidae, also monotypic (which may be included also in Fundulidae as a subfamily, depending on authors);
  • Cyprinodontidae, with 2 subfamilies: Cubanichthyinae and Cyprinodontinae (with the latter in 3 tribes, Aphaniini, Cyprinodontini and Orestiadini);
  • Anablepsidae, with 3 subfamilies: Anablepsinae, viviparous, the monotypic Oxyzygonectinae, oviparous, and Jenynsiinae, viviparous;
  • Poeciliidae, with 2 subfamilies: Poeciliinae viviparous (except the monotypic subtribe Tomeurina -or tribe as Tomeurini, depending on authors-, oviparous) and Aplocheilichthyinae oviparous (in 3 tribes, Aplocheilichthyini and Procatopodini in the Old World and the monotypic Fluviphylacini in the New World). These 10 families are also accepted in international data bases on all fishes, such as Eschmeyer's Catalog and Fishbase, to ensure coherence and universality. The lower levels depend more on authors : a consensus view is selected herein.
  • 
    
    Psuedepiplatys annulatus Monrovia

    EPIPLATEINI

    Tribe Epiplateini Huber, 2000

    Epiplatys  
    Aphyoplatys  
    Pseudepiplatys  

    It is quite possible the ancestral form of all killies was something like an Epiplatys or (Asian) Aplocheilus. In fact, Scheel, in his tome _Atlas of Killifish of the Old World_ saw no reason to separate Epiplatys from Aplochelius and all the pictures of Epiplatys in that book are referred to as Aplocheilus. This may have been too rash - time will tell - but to this day Epiplatys is Epiplatys. For now anyaway.

    Tribe Adamantini Huber, 2000. [Huber, J.H. 2000. Killi-Data 2000. Updated checklist of taxonomic names, collecting localities and bibliographic references of oviparous Cyprinodont fishes (Cyprinodontiformes). Cybium, Soc. fr. Ichtyologie, Ed., Paris.: 538 pp., figs.] * Genus Adamas Huber, 1979. Subfamily Epiplateinae Huber, 2000. [Huber, J.H. 2000. Killi-Data 2000. Updated checklist of taxonomic names, collecting localities and bibliographic references of oviparous Cyprinodont fishes (Cyprinodontiformes). Cybium, Soc. fr. Ichtyologie, Ed., Paris.: 538 pp., figs.] Tribe Epiplateini Huber, 2000. * Genus Epiplatys Gill, 1862.


    Callopanchax occidentalis

    CALLOPANCHINI

    Tribe Callopanchini Huber, 2000

    Archiaphyosemion  
    Callopanchax  
    Scriptaphyosemion  

    The fish formerly known as "Roloffia".


    Nothobranchios rachovii

    NOTHOBRANCHIINI

    Family Nothobranchiidae Garman, 1895.

    Nothobranchius  
    Fundulosoma  
    Pronothobranchius  

    Whereas Apyosemion and Epiplatys species are generally found in forest streams, nothos are found in bodies of water inhabiting more open ground. The fishes themselves are almost all fat bodied smaller fish; while many of them look rather alike in terms of coloration (blue bodie/red tail) many are unique and one in particular - N. rachovii might be one of the prettiest freshwater fish, ever.

    Family Nothobranchiidae Garman, 1895. [Garman, S. 1895. The cyprinodonts. Memoirs of the Museum of Comparative Zoology at Harvard
    College 19 (1): 1-179, 12 plates.]
    Subfamily Nothobranchiinae Garman, 1895.
    Tribe Nothobranchiini Garman, 1895.
    Subtribe Nothobranchiina Garman, 1895.

    Genus Nothobranchius Peters, 1868.


    Procotopus aberrens

    PROCATOPODINA

    Subtribe Procatopodina Fowler, 1916.

    Pantanodon  
    Hylopanchax  
    Hypsopanchax  
    Lamprichthys  
    Platypanchax  
    Plataplochilus  
    Procatopus  
    Rhexipanchax  

    Lampeyes are most un-killi like in their behaviour and habits being fast swimming schooling fish. That's because they are Poecilids, that is these particular egg laying tooth carps are more closely related to live bearing tooth carps - guppies, platies and the like - than other killifish. In fact Lampeyes and Livebearers are both member of family Poecilidae. Technically this makes livebearers killifish.


    Image of Adamus formosus

    ADAMANTINI

    Tribe Adamantini Huber, 2000

    Adamas  

    A single Genus: Adamas Huber, 1979


    Pahypanchax omolonotus

    APLOCHEILIDAE

    Family Aplocheilidae Bleeker, 1859

    Pachypanchax  

    Pachypanchax (found only in Madagascar) are the only African genera in Aplocheilidae. The other Genus in Aplocheilidae is represented in India by Apolcheilus.


    Image of Aplocheilichthys spilauchen

    APLOCHEILICHTHYINI

    Tribe Aplocheilichthyini Myers, 1928

    Aplocheilichthys  

    Genus Aplocheilichthys Bleeker, 1862


    australe

    APHYOSEMIINA

    Subtribe Aphyosemiina Huber, 2000

    Aphyosemion  
    Episemion  
    Foerschichthys  
    Fundulopanchax  

    The genus Aphyosemion contains its fair share of the number of all killies; these species include the easiest, hardest, and very nearly the smallest and biggest of all killies. Aphy. australe was among the earliest of all killi imports in the first decade of 1900 and is to this day a perennial favorite.


    Image of Poropanchax normani

    MICROPANCHINA

    Subtribe Micropanchina Huber, 2000

    Laciris  
    Lacustricola  
    Micropanchax  
    Poropanchax  

    Huber, J.H. 2000. Killi-Data 2000. Updated checklist of taxonomic names, collecting localities and bibliographic references of oviparous Cyprinodont fishes (Cyprinodontiformes). Cybium, Soc. fr. Ichtyologie, Ed., Paris.: 538 pp., figs


    This page functions to some extent as a key. If you're trying to identify a certain African killifish just clock on the fish it looks most like above.

    Ref per: http://www.killi-data.org/zz-discoverPyramidal.htm

    
    

    
    

    Copyright 2007 Richard J. Sexton.

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