Micropanchax loati (Boulenger 1901)
Male left, female right. Line drawings by Bob Heap.
Meaning of Name |
After Wilson L.S.Loat, collector of the type material. |
First Description |
Haplochilus loati Boulenger 1901 Ann & Mag Nat. Hist. (7) viii 1901, p 446 A plate appeared in Fish, Nile, p 417, pl lxxix, fig. 7 (1907). |
Size |
3 cm (Killi - Data reports 4 cm with females growing larger). |
Meristics |
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Karyotype |
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Sub-Genus |
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Group |
loati. Consisting of - antinorii, bracheti, fulleborni, pfaffi, rudolfianus. |
Synonyms |
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Populations
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Zaria - Imported by the BKA around September/October 1974 from the region of Zaria, Northern Nigeria. This form had green/yellow to light brown dorsal & anal fins. The dorsal also had a blue/white outer margin & each ray stood out in relief. The eye was 'neon' blue. On receipt the fish were hard to sex but after a few hours of settling in males showed a grey green overcast on the body. Males also developed longer pelvic fins & the dorsal fin was more pointed than the females. Sexual differences became more plain as the fish matured. |
Type Locality |
Lake No, White Nile River, Sudan. |
Distribution |
Widespread, from Egypt to Northern Nigeria including Kenya, Tanzania & Uganda. Inhabits the Nile basin from Lake Victoria to the Delta in Egypt. |
Habitat |
Still water. Swamps, irrigation ditches & lakes. Water is alkaline to neutral pH, water temperature ranges from 20 - 35°C. Reported to inhabit shallow water. Sympatric sp. Ep.bifasciatus, Ep.spilargyreius. |
Distinguishing Characteristics | Distinguished from pfaffi by the pointed (not rounded) shape of the mouth. |
Colour/Pattern Variability | |
History |
Discovered by Wilson Loat. Later collections by Thys in 1984 (Burundi), Wildekamp 1978 (Tanzania), Wildekamp 1990 (Uganda), Watters et al 1990 (Uganda), Watters et al 1993 (Tanzania). Boulenger gives the following collectors / locations in his 1915 Catalogue.
First introduced as an aquarium fish in 1904 in Germany where they were then known as Aplocheilichthys schoelleri. No breeding records can be found from this period. History of the synonym Haplochilus schoelleri Boulenger 1904
Boulenger gives the following collectors
/ locations in his 1915 Catalogue.
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Breeding Notes |
Best maintained in shoals in a well lit tank
with plenty of floating plants. Water conditions seem of little importance
but the temperature should be maintained at 75°F at least. Slight
aeration seemed to benefit the BKA import but in nature the water in
there biotope is still. Eggs will be layed in floating plants or mops.
Egg size is quite large in comparison with the size of the fish. Water
incubated eggs hatch in 18 days at 24·5°C. Killi-Data reports tanks should be long &
exposed to direct sunlight. The breeding tank had neutral to acidic
water. Water temperature below 23°C. Regular water changes were
done. Wildekamp in 'A World of Killies' reports the
sp. as being very sensitive to water pollution. Fry on hatching require
Paramecium for 4-5 days. Growth
rate is slow. Another report states 'eggs incubated in water take about 16 days at 72°F'. |
Diameter of Egg | 1·5
mm (Trewavas) Eggs reported as being tough & able to withstand adverse conditions. |
Remarks |
Some reports (under the name schoelleri) have stated that when the fish reach 12 months of age they become emaciated & sickly looking. Females can outgrow males. |