African wedgefish | |
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Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Chondrichthyes |
Superorder: | Batoidea |
Order: | Rhinopristiformes |
Family: | Rhinidae |
Genus: | Rhynchobatus |
Species: | R. luebberti |
Binomial name | |
Rhynchobatus luebberti Ehrenbaum, 1915 | |
The African wedgefish, guitarra, Lubbert's guitarfish, or spikenose wedgefish (Rhynchobatus luebberti) is a species of fish in the Rhinidae family. It is the only species in its genus to occur in the East Atlantic. [3]
The fish is named in honor of Hans Julius Lübbert (1870-1951), a German fisheries inspector. [4]
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African wedgefish have a pale olive-brown or olive-grey color with white spots spread across their back. The edges of their fins are sometimes paler in color. They have a cluster of three black marks on each side of a ridge that runs along their back. Another dark mark can be found each one of these marks. The area around each fish's eye is lighter, reminiscent of a mask. The fish have ridges near their front that possess a row of thorns. [5]
The African wedgefish has a maximum total length of about 3 m (9.8 ft), but are usually 1.5 m (4.9 ft) long. They have 172-176 free vertebral centra. [6] [7]
The fish is found in the warm East Atlantic in Angola, Benin, Cameroon, the Republic of the Congo, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mauritania, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and Togo.
Its natural habitats are shallow seas, coral reefs, estuarine waters, and coastal saline lagoons. [5]
The African wedgefish prey upon small bony fish and invertebrates. [5]
African wedgefish are ovoviviparous—eggs remain inside the mother until hatching. Embryos initially feed on yolk. Afterward, they receive nutrition from their mother by absorbing uterine fluid that contains mucus, fat, or protein through specialized structures. [7] [8]
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The African wedgefish is currently critically endangered. [6]
It is threatened by habitat loss and poachers. [5]
Maylandia lombardoi, is a 13 centimetres (5.1 in) long freshwater fish from the family Cichlidae. This species is popular in the aquarium hobby where it is sold under a variety of common names including: lombardoi mbuna, kenyi mbuna or kennyi mbuna or kenyi cichlid. This species is sometimes seen in the genus Metriaclima owing to a dispute in which a minority of cichlid researchers do not consider Maylandia valid (see Maylandia for discussion. The specific name honours the exotic fish dealer John Lombardo.
Nimbochromis livingstonii, Livingston's cichlid or (locally) kalingono, is a freshwater mouthbrooding cichlid native to Lake Malawi, an African Rift Lake. It is also found in the upper Shire River and Lake Malombe. They are found in inshore areas of the lake over sandy substrates.
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