Heros (fish)

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Heros
Rotruecken-Augenfleck-Buntbarsch Heros efasciatus Tierpark Hellabrunn-1.jpg
Heros sp. Rotkeil
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Cichliformes
Family: Cichlidae
Tribe: Heroini
Genus: Heros
Heckel, 1840
Type species
Heros severus
Heckel, 1840

Heros is a genus of cichlids native to the Amazon, Orinoco and Essequibo River basins in South America. [1] They were previously included in the genus Cichlasoma before its restriction to the distinct group of "Port Cichlids."

The Heros species most commonly encountered in the aquarium trade are fish referable to the species Heros efasciatus . However, the trade name generally used is "Severum Cichlids." Trade fish are very often line bred specimens of color sports such as "Super Red Severums" or "Gold Severums." The provenance of these is not clear, but they seem to have been derived from the base "Green Severum" form that is most closely identified with H. efasciatus.

Species

There are currently five recognized species in this genus: [2]

Many authorities also cite a previously described species, Heros appendiculatus. It has a form quite distinct from H. efasciatus but was synonymized with H. efasciatus by Dr. Sven O. Kullander. Another color form, Heros sp. Rotkeil ("Red Shoulder") is thought by hobby specialists to represent an undescribed Heros species.

Related Research Articles

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<i>Apistogramma</i> Genus of fishes

Apistogramma is a large genus of freshwater fish in the family Cichlidae found in South America, but also commonly kept in aquariums. They are dwarf cichlids that mostly feed on tiny animals and have breeding behaviors that vary depending on the exact species.

<i>Aequidens</i> Genus of fishes

Aequidens is a genus of fish in the family Cichlidae found in South America. Formerly a wastebasket genus, as presently defined Aequidens is largely restricted to the Amazon Basin, Orinoco Basin and river basins in The Guianas. The only exceptions are A. plagiozonatus which also occurs in the Paraná Basin, and A. tetramerus which also occurs in the Parnaíba River.

<i>Geophagus</i> Genus of fishes

Geophagus is a genus of cichlids that mainly live in South America as far south as Argentina and Uruguay, but a single species, G. crassilabris is from Panama. They are found in a wide range of freshwater habitats. They are part of a group popularly known as eartheaters and mostly feed by picking up mouthfuls of sediment to sift out food items such as invertebrates, plant material and detritus. The largest species reach up to 28 cm (11 in) in standard length. They are often kept in aquariums.

<i>Hypselecara</i> Genus of fishes

Hypselecara is a small genus of cichlids native to the Amazon and Orinoco basins in South America. H. temporalis is a relatively common aquarium fish known in the aquarium trade as the chocolate cichild.

<i>Uaru</i> Genus of fishes

Uaru is a small genus of cichlids found in blackwater and whitewater habitats in the upper Orinoco and the Amazon basin.

<i>Dicrossus</i> Genus of fishes

Dicrossus is a genus of small cichlid fishes native to rivers in the Amazon and Orinoco basins in South America. These cichlids have several dark spots on the sides of their bodies. Depending on the species, they typically only reach 4–7 cm (1.6–2.8 in) in length.

Heros severus, is a species of tropical freshwater cichlid native to the upper Orinoco and upper Rio Negro basins in South America. It has historically been confused with several other species in the genus, most recently H. liberifer.

<i>Nannacara</i> Genus of fishes

Nannacara is a genus of small freshwater cichlid fish endemic to South America. The genus is part of the Cichlasomatini tribe of the Cichlasomatinae subfamily. In the aquarium hobby, the fish is considered a dwarf cichlid along with Apistogramma, Mikrogeophagus, and Dicrossus species. Nannacara anomala is the most commonly encountered species in the aquarium trade.

<i>Satanoperca</i> Genus of fishes

Satanoperca is a small genus of cichlids from South America, where they are known from the Orinoco, Essequibo, Nickerie, Amazon and Paraná–Paraguay river basins. They are mainly found in areas with slow-moving waters, but some species have also been recorded from rapids.

<i>Hoplarchus</i> Genus of fishes

Hoplarchus is a genus of cichlid in the tribe Heroini. It contains the single species Hoplarchus psittacus, which is endemic to the blackwater rivers in Brazil, Colombia and Venezuela, including the Rio Negro, Jamari, Preto da Eva, Urubu rivers and upper Orinoco drainages. This fish can reach a length of 35 centimetres (14 in) TL and is important as a food fish to local indigenous peoples. This species is occasionally kept as an aquarium fish and is traded under the common name "parrot cichlid".

<i>Haplochromis</i> Genus of fishes

Haplochromis is a ray-finned fish genus in the family Cichlidae. It has been used as the default "wastebin taxon" for Pseudocrenilabrinae cichlids of the East African Rift, and as such became the "largest" fish "genus". Many of these cichlids are popular aquarium fishes; like similar Haplochromini they are known as "haplos", "happies" or "haps" among aquarium enthusiasts.

<i>Laetacara</i> Genus of fishes

Laetacara is a small genus of cichlids native to freshwater habitats in tropical and subtropical South America, ranging from the upper Orinoco River basin in Venezuela to the Paraná River basin Argentina. The genus is also collectively known as the smiling acaras. Like all cichlids, Laetacara species have well-developed brood care.

<i>Mesonauta</i> Genus of fishes

Mesonauta, the flag cichlids, is a small genus of cichlids native to the Amazon, Orinoco, Essequibo, Paraná and Paraguay basins in South America. Mesonauta is included in the subfamily Cichlasomatinae. They occur in various freshwater habitats such as streams and lakes, especially in areas with little water movement and aquatic vegetation. They are generally found in small groups that stay near the water surface. To avoid predators, adults may jump out of the water and juveniles mimic leaves.

<i>Andinoacara</i> Genus of fishes

Andinoacara is a genus of fish in the family Cichlidae. The genus was described in 2009. Before this the members of Andinoacara were placed in the "catch-all" genus Aequidens although they are not closely related to the other members of this genus. The genus Andinoacara is restricted to freshwater habitats in northwestern South America and southern Central America. There are no members of the genus in the Amazon Basin.

<i>Heros efasciatus</i> Species of fish

Heros efasciatus is a species of tropical freshwater cichlid native to the Amazon basin in South America. It is commonly found in the aquarium trade, often in its gold colored variation rather than the wild-type olive green one.

<i>Heros liberifer</i> Species of fish

Heros liberifer is a species of tropical cichlid native to lentic habitats, especially flooded forests, in the upper and middle Orinoco basin in South America.

<i>Heros notatus</i> Species of fish

Heros notatus is a species of tropical freshwater cichlid native to Rio Negro and Essequibo River in South America.

Saddle cichlid

The saddle cichlid is a species of cichlid from the tribe Cichlasomatini, part of the subfamily Cichlasomatinae from South America. It is the type species of the genus Aequidens. It is reasonably common in the aquarium trade.

References

  1. 1 2 Staeck, W. & Schindler, I. (2015): Description of a new Heros species (Teleostei, Cichlidae) from the Rio Orinoco drainage and notes on Heros severus Heckel, 1840. Bulletin of Fish Biology, 15 (1/2): 121-136.
  2. Froese, Rainer and Pauly, Daniel, eds. (2017). Species of Heros in FishBase . January 2017 version.