''Limia sulphurophila'', also known as sulphur limia, is a livebearing fish in the family

Poeciliidae The Poeciliidae are a family of freshwater fishes of the order Cyprinodontiformes, the tooth-carps, and include well-known live-bearing aquarium fish, such as the guppy, molly, platy, and swordtail. The original distribution of the family was ...

. It is endemic to the

Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic ( ; es, República Dominicana, ) is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean region. It occupies the eastern five-eighths of the island, which it shares with ...

in the island of

Hispaniola Hispaniola (, also ; es, La Española; Latin and french: Hispaniola; ht, Ispayola; tnq, Ayiti or Quisqueya) is an island in the Caribbean that is part of the Greater Antilles. Hispaniola is the most populous island in the West Indies, and th ...

Taxonomic history

The

holotype A holotype is a single physical example (or illustration) of an organism, known to have been used when the species (or lower-ranked taxon) was formally described. It is either the single such physical example (or illustration) or one of seve ...

(MCZ 54401) is an adult male collected by

Ernest Edward Williams Ernest Edward Williams (January 7, 1914 – September 1, 1998) was an American herpetologist. He coined the term ''ecomorph'' based on his research on anoles. Taxa named in honor of Ernest E. Williams The following species are named in honor of ...

, Susan M. Case, and José Rosado at a sulfur spring at Balneario La Zurza, on August 19, 1978. One

phylogenetic In biology, phylogenetics (; from Greek φυλή/ φῦλον [] "tribe, clan, race", and wikt:γενετικός, γενετικός [] "origin, source, birth") is the study of the evolutionary history and relationships among or within groups ...

analysis showed that ''L. sulphurophila'' is a

sister species In phylogenetics, a sister group or sister taxon, also called an adelphotaxon, comprises the closest relative(s) of another given unit in an evolutionary tree. Definition The expression is most easily illustrated by a cladogram: Taxon A and ...

to '' L. melanonotata'' and '' L. perugiae.''

Etymology

The name ''sulphurophila'' ("

sulfur Sulfur (or sulphur in British English) is a chemical element with the symbol S and atomic number 16. It is abundant, multivalent and nonmetallic. Under normal conditions, sulfur atoms form cyclic octatomic molecules with a chemical formul ...

loving") refers to the

ecology Ecology () is the study of the relationships between living organisms, including humans, and their physical environment. Ecology considers organisms at the individual, population, community, ecosystem, and biosphere level. Ecology overl ...

of this species, as the type series was collected in a

sulfur spring A fumarole (or fumerole) is a vent in the surface of the Earth or other rocky planet from which hot volcanic gases and vapors are emitted, without any accompanying liquids or solids. Fumaroles are characteristic of the late stages of volcani ...

Morphology

Adults and juveniles are pale brown in color, darker dorsally and fading to pale gray on ventral surfaces. Varying degrees of black pigment concentrate on the lateral fields, forming a broad lateral line that extends from the pectoral fins to the

caudal fin Fins are distinctive anatomical features composed of bony spines or rays protruding from the body of a fish. They are covered with skin and joined together either in a webbed fashion, as seen in most bony fish, or similar to a flipper, as se ...

. A series of

iridescent Iridescence (also known as goniochromism) is the phenomenon of certain surfaces that appear to gradually change color as the angle of view or the angle of illumination changes. Examples of iridescence include soap bubbles, feathers, butterfl ...

scales that are blueish-purple in color are usually scattered along, contrasting with the darker ground color of the lateral fields. Females and juveniles have a rounded black spot at the base of the

dorsal fin A dorsal fin is a fin located on the back of most marine and freshwater vertebrates within various taxa of the animal kingdom. Many species of animals possessing dorsal fins are not particularly closely related to each other, though through c ...

. This spot is often reduced or completely absent in older individuals. The

on members of this species tends to be broadly rounded. This trait is

diagnostic Diagnosis is the identification of the nature and cause of a certain phenomenon. Diagnosis is used in many different disciplines, with variations in the use of logic, analytics, and experience, to determine "cause and effect". In systems enginee ...

, and helps distinguish this species from

sympatric In biology, two related species or populations are considered sympatric when they exist in the same geographic area and thus frequently encounter one another. An initially interbreeding population that splits into two or more distinct species s ...

''Limia melanonotata''. Like other members of the family Poeciliidae, males of ''L. sulphurophila'' can be identified by the absence of a broad

anal fin Fins are distinctive anatomical features composed of bony spines or rays protruding from the body of a fish. They are covered with skin and joined together either in a webbed fashion, as seen in most bony fish, or similar to a flipper, as see ...

and the presence of a

gonopodium Fins are distinctive anatomical features composed of bony spines or rays protruding from the body of a fish. They are covered with skin and joined together either in a webbed fashion, as seen in most bony fish, or similar to a flipper, as see ...

. Adult males usually develop a yellow to orange dorsal fin as they mature. The orange pigmentation can also be present in the caudal fin and anterior ventral surfaces of the body of males.

Distribution

Only known from the sulfur spring at Balneario La Zurza on the Dominican Republic's southeastern shore of Lake Enriquillo. Specimens identified as ''L. sulphurophila'' have been collected in multiple springs in the Lake Enriquillo basin. Further studies are required to determine the status of these populations.

Habitat and ecology

''Limia sulphurophila'' inhabits lowland

freshwater Fresh water or freshwater is any naturally occurring liquid or frozen water containing low concentrations of dissolved salts and other total dissolved solids. Although the term specifically excludes seawater and brackish water, it does incl ...

karst springs A karst spring or karstic spring is a spring (outflow of groundwater) that is part of a karst hydrological system. Description Because of their often conical or inverted bowl shape, karst springs are also known in German-speaking lands as a ''T ...

on the basin of Lake Enriquillo. These ecosystems are characterized by, hard,

alkaline In chemistry, an alkali (; from ar, القلوي, al-qaly, lit=ashes of the saltwort) is a basic, ionic salt of an alkali metal or an alkaline earth metal. An alkali can also be defined as a base that dissolves in water. A solution of a ...

waters with high levels of carbonate salts. Springs inhabited by this species have sandy to gravelly bottom which can be covered with

algae Algae (; singular alga ) is an informal term for a large and diverse group of photosynthetic eukaryotic organisms. It is a polyphyletic grouping that includes species from multiple distinct clades. Included organisms range from unicellular micr ...

and

aquatic plants Aquatic plants are plants that have adapted to living in aquatic environments (saltwater or freshwater). They are also referred to as hydrophytes or macrophytes to distinguish them from algae and other microphytes. A macrophyte is a plant that g ...

. Other fish species present in this habitat include ''

Limia melanonotata ''Limia melanonotata'', the blackbanded limia, is a toothcarp in the family Poeciliidae. It is endemic to the island of Hispaniola (in both Haiti and the Dominican Republic). Taxonomic history John Treadwell Nichols and George S. Myers wrote t ...

,'' ''

Gambusia hispaniolae The Hispaniolan gambusia (''Gambusia hispaniolae'') is a fish endemic to the island of Hispaniola. Taxonomy William L. Fink wrote its species description in a 1971 revision of the '' Gambusia nicaraguensis'' species group. Some specimens of this ...

, and Gobiomorus dormitor''. Plants present throughout the distribution of ''L. sulphurophila'' include '' Ludwigia repens'', ''

Najas guadalupensis ''Najas guadalupensis'' is a species of aquatic plant known by the common names southern waternymph, guppy grass, najas grass, and common water nymph. It is native to the Americas, where it is widespread. It is considered native to Canada (from A ...

'', ''

Bacopa monnieri ''Bacopa monnieri'' is a perennial, creeping herb native to the wetlands of southern and Eastern India, Australia, Europe, Africa, Asia, and North and South America. It is known by the common names water hyssop, waterhyssop, brahmi, thyme-leafed ...

'', '' Hemianthus callitrichoides'', '' Echinodorus berteroi'', '' Riccia fluitans, Heteranthera reniformis'' and '' Eleocharis sp.''

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q3757064 sulphurophila Fish described in 1980 Fish of the Dominican Republic Endemic fauna of the Dominican Republic