Cinnamon colouration of the body.

Clausen H.S. 1963. (Aphyosemion cinnamomeum).

Description of three new species of Aphyosemion Myers, from Nigeria & Cameroon.

Videnskabelige Meddeleser fra Dansk Naturhistorisk Forening 125: p 201-203, plate 7, figures d-e.

6 cm

• D = 13-14, A = 16-17, ll = 30-31 (Clausen 1963)
• D = 13-14, A = 16-17, ll = 30-33 (Scheel 1968)

n = 20, A = 33 (Scheel 1972)

Paraphyosemion

gardneri

• Aphyosemion cinnamomeum Clausen 1963
• Fundulopanchax cinnamomeum Lazara 1984
• Aphyosemion (Paraphyosemion) cinnamomeum Huber 1994
• K3 (BKA assigned code 1970)

• Baduma (spelling may also be seen as Badouma). See Photo in Killi-News 102.
• Bétook (sometimes spelt Beetok)
• Bolo Moboka HAH 98 ( a population spelt Noboka has been in the hobby but this is likely to be a corruption)
• Dikomé (another reference Dikoni - Bafor was known to be circulating in the DKG. Collected possibly in 2001).
• Kombone
• Kumba
• Mangua
• Manyeman
• M'boka - HLM 99/8
• Nguti (western Cameroon)
• Supé (Known in the BKA as Super) GPE 90/16
• HML 99/8

Baduma - Collected in 1973 in a small brook north of Baduma on the road to Mamfe.

44 miles north of Kumba. This biotope was a small stream in a low mountainous area. Stenholt Clausen found this sp. on an isolated plateau 10 miles wide with deep gorges falling away on each side.

Restricted to a narrow plateau between mount Rumpi & the Cameroon mountain chain, inhabiting waters drained by the Mungo River system.They have been collected between 9 & 54·7 kms south of Manyemen towards Mambanda (Kumba).

Brooks & streams in rain forest areas with high rainfall (50" per year). Biotopes sit over volcanic rock.

Scheel in ROTOW 1 records water of 1.5 GH & pH 6.8. Reportedly caught with Procatopus similis.

This sp. is one of the only members in the genus to be completely devoid of red pigment. The nearest sp. showing any degree of similarity is A.celiae. These can be easily seperated as A.celiae has red spots on the body (generally).

The caudal fin of Baduma has a squarer pattern than the population from Kumba. See Killi-News 117.

Not really possible to confuse this sp. with other sp.

First discovered by Stenholt Clausen on an isolated plateau 10 miles wide with deep gorges falling away each side. He collected 6 males & 2 females. The biotope was a brook 44 miles north of Kumba. See Killi-News 29.

Scheel received specimens from Clausen in 1960 which were bred (?) & distributed over various countries. Their is a 4 year gap here, but eggs were distributed in this period. Scheel considered this sp. fairly easy to breed but biased towards males in how young sexed out.
Fish were also given to Hans Klementsen & Hjortekaer. Klementsen failed to produce eggs so Scheel had the fish which spawned in peat.

In March 1963 Stenholt Clausen described them as Aphyosemion cinnamomeum within the then subgenus Fundulopanchax.

Scheel visited the site in 1966 & remarked in ROTOW 1 that the area was on 'top of a low range of mountains between the main block of the Cameroon Mountains and Mount Roumpi, west of the chain'. Scheel regards this sp. as not a good swimmer regarding distribution. Below the southern slope of the plateau he discovered Aphyosemion celiae & described them in 1971.

On January 17th 1966 a visiting German aquarist (unnamed) gave the BKA a few sp. including the then A.cinnamomeum. These were put into the new species committee of the day for breeding & distribution. It was reported at the time that they were new to the BKA.

On August 8th the BKA received a wild shipment from Cameroon containing this sp.

In 1972 some BKA members went to Vienna & brought back some eggs. Many of these eggs hatched out on the return journey but 6 fry survived to form a brood stock.

In 1970 A.C.Radda found a population at Baduma.

Eggs are layed at all levels of the tank. Females should be rested frequently. Water stored eggs take 3-4 weeks of incubation. Dry storage can be hit & miss as eggs may take 7-14 days after wetting to hatch. Growth may be observed as rapid in the early stages. Sexual maturity takes about 2 months but full size may take 4-5 months.

Reportedly does not eat young.

I have spawned 2 populations - Bètook & Kombone both of which were distributed in the UK in the early '80's. These I found a little harder to breed than a typical Aphyosemion. This was undoubtedly due to the hard water used (pH 8, DH 10). Eggs were few & laid in bottom mops which were taken off & laid on wet peat for one month prior to wetting.

Scheel in ROTOW 1 reports that this sp. is easy to keep in hard, alkaline water but when kept in soft, acid water they are susceptible to disease including Mycobacteria & velvet. Eggs are reportedly layed at the bottom of the tank.
He found that water quality was critical to sperm survival. Harder water gave mostly infertile eggs.

Bob Heap in BKA newsletter No.117, May 1975 wrote an article regarding his breeding attempts with the Baduma population.
He used a 10x8x8" tank filled to 4" deep with half water from old planted killie tanks & half from water which had stood over peat. Water temperature fluctuated between 71-76°F. Floating & bottom mops were used. In this set up 50 eggs per week were collected over a 3-4 week period. After this period the fish were removed & seperated. Eggs were laid at all levels.These were split into water & dry storage methods. 
Eggs in water took 3 weeks incubation before hatching. As the brood stock matured this period extended to 4 weeks.
Eggs dry stored were incubated for 28 - 49 days but it still took 7 - 14 days in all cases to achieve a substantial hatch.
Eggs left to hatch in the parents tank hatched & were raised to a good size without problems. Other accounts regard them as eating young fry.

Jaroslav Kadlec in BKA newsletter No.279, November 1988 noted the parents to be moderate feeders not eating a great deal.
Eggs water incubated took 4-6 weeks to hatch. Dry storage on wet peat was given at 7-10 weeks. Young grow slowly with sexual maturity being gained at 7-10 weeks.

An unamed author in BKA Killinews No.325, October 1992 reported they prefer cooler water between 20 - 24°C with a pH of 6·8. For conditioning it was recommended to feed Bloodworm & mosquito larvae.
It was noted that this sp. was prone to Dropsy.
Eggs were laid in mops & peat fibre. Incubation out of water was 6-8 weeks at 24°C. Water for hatching should be a couple of degrees cooler than they were stored at. Fry grow slowly with the yellow outer marginal bands starting to show at 3 months.

Not often seen probably due to its difficulty in breeding & lack of colouration although the Supè population was seen in the BKA around 1997.
A peculiarity around the early '80's with this sp. was the appearance of red blotches on the flanks after fish were moved either through auction or post. This blotching disappeared gradually without treatment.