Xenochromis

Xenochromis hecqui is a species of cichlid endemic to Lake Tanganyika in East Africa. It is mainly found at depths of 6–100 m (20–328 ft),[2] but has been recorded somewhat deeper, even in waters virtually devoid of oxygen.[3] This species is a scale eater, consuming the scales off of other fishes, but will also feed on copepods.[2] It can reach a total length of up to 30 cm (12 in). Currently it is the only known member of its genus.[2] The specific name honours the Belgian Lieutenant Célestin Hecq (1859-1910), a member of the Belgian colonial forces fighting the slave trade who collected the type of this species.[4]

Xenochromis
Illustration from Boulenger's species description (1899)
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Cichliformes
Family: Cichlidae
Genus: Xenochromis
Boulenger, 1899
Species:
X. hecqui
Binomial name
Xenochromis hecqui
Boulenger, 1899
Synonyms
  • Perissodus hecqui (Boulenger, 1899)

References
  1. Bigirimana, C. (2006). "Xenochromis hecqui". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2006: e.T60708A12395896. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2006.RLTS.T60708A12395896.en.
  2. Froese, Rainer and Pauly, Daniel, eds. (2013). "Xenochromis hecqui" in FishBase. April 2013 version.
  3. Lowe-McConnell, R.H. (1987). Ecological Studies in Tropical Fish Communities. ISBN 0-521-28064-8.
  4. Scharpf, Christopher; Lazara, Kenneth J. (25 September 2018). "Order CICHLIFORMES: Family CICHLIDAE: Subfamily PSEUDOCRENILABRINAE (p-y)". The ETYFish Project Fish Name Etymology Database. Christopher Scharpf and Kenneth J. Lazara. Retrieved 25 November 2018.


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