| Cuban gambusia | |
|---|---|
| | |
| Male at top, female below | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Cyprinodontiformes |
| Family: | Poeciliidae |
| Genus: | Gambusia |
| Species: | G. punctata |
| Binomial name | |
| Gambusia punctata Poey, 1854 | |
The Cuban gambusia, spotted gambusia or blue gambusia (Gambusia punctata) [2] is a species of freshwater fish. It is a member of the family Poeciliidae of order Cyprinodontiformes, and is the type species of its genus. [3] It is native to Cuba, inhabiting lakes, ponds and streams, including mountain streams. A carnivorous surface feeder, it occurs in shoals near the shoreline. It be found in estuarine habitat. [1] [4]
This species has the terminal, upward-facing mouth typical of surface feeders, and a protruding belly. It has four or five rows of darkly spotted scales, possibly forming a dark lateral stripe in the case of the midline row. The dorsal and caudal fins are typically partially spotted. [4] Males reach a maximum standard length (SL) of around 4.8 cm, with females reaching about 7.0 cm. [5] Record SL for this species is 10 cm. [1]
Gambusia punctata is part of a species complex including G. rhizophorae , G. xanthosoma , G. beebei and G. pseudopunctata . [6] Additional cryptic species have been proposed to exist within the range of G. punctata on the basis of mitochondrial haplogroup data. [6] [7]