__NOTOC__ ''Telmatochromis'' is a small

cichlid Cichlids are fish from the family Cichlidae in the order Cichliformes. Cichlids were traditionally classed in a suborder, the Labroidei, along with the wrasses ( Labridae), in the order Perciformes, but molecular studies have contradicted this ...

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

of the

subfamily In biological classification, a subfamily (Latin: ', plural ') is an auxiliary (intermediate) taxonomic rank, next below family but more inclusive than genus. Standard nomenclature rules end subfamily botanical names with "-oideae", and zoologi ...

Pseudocrenilabrinae The Pseudocrenilabrinae are a subfamily in the cichlid family of fishes to which, according to a study from 2004, includes all the Middle Eastern and African cichlids with the exception of the unusual '' Heterochromis multidens'' and the Malaga ...

. These

ray-finned fish Actinopterygii (; ), members of which are known as ray-finned fishes, is a class of bony fish. They comprise over 50% of living vertebrate species. The ray-finned fishes are so called because their fins are webs of skin supported by bony or hor ...

es are

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

to the

Lake Tanganyika Lake Tanganyika () is an African Great Lake. It is the second-oldest freshwater lake in the world, the second-largest by volume, and the second-deepest, in all cases after Lake Baikal in Siberia. It is the world's longest freshwater lake. ...

basin (mostly in the lake itself, but also its outflow river Lukuga) in Africa.

Systematics

Analysis of their

mtDNA Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA or mDNA) is the DNA located in mitochondria, cellular organelles within eukaryotic cells that convert chemical energy from food into a form that cells can use, such as adenosine triphosphate (ATP). Mitochondrial DNA ...

NADH dehydrogenase NADH dehydrogenase is an enzyme that converts nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD) from its reduced form (NADH) to its oxidized form (NAD+). Members of the NADH dehydrogenase family and analogues are commonly systematically named using the for ...

subunit 2 (ND2)

sequence In mathematics, a sequence is an enumerated collection of objects in which repetitions are allowed and order matters. Like a set, it contains members (also called ''elements'', or ''terms''). The number of elements (possibly infinite) is calle ...

shows that

hybrid Hybrid may refer to: Science * Hybrid (biology), an offspring resulting from cross-breeding ** Hybrid grape, grape varieties produced by cross-breeding two ''Vitis'' species ** Hybridity, the property of a hybrid plant which is a union of two dif ...

ization must have played some role in the

evolution Evolution is change in the heritable characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. These characteristics are the expressions of genes, which are passed on from parent to offspring during reproduction. Variation ...

of this genus. (2007): Phylogenetic relationships of the Lake Tanganyika cichlid tribe Lamprologini: The story from mitochondrial DNA. '' Mol. Phylogenet. Evol.'' 45(2): 629–642. (HTML abstract) For one thing, it might be that ''Telmatochromis'' is close to ''

Julidochromis ''Julidochromis'' is a genus of cichlids in the subfamily Pseudocrenilabrinae. They are commonly called julies and are endemic to Lake Tanganyika in eastern Africa. This genus includes six formally described species, some with a number local vari ...

'', which they somewhat resemble. A possibility is hybridization between the ancestor of ''Telmatochromis'' and a lineage of ''Julidochromis'' which later gave rise to '' J. marlieri'' and the

Convict Julie The convict julie (''Julidochromis regani'') is a cichlid species in the subfamily Pseudocrenilabrinae family endemic to Lake Tanganyika. Hence it is found in Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Tanzania, and Zambia. The fish is na ...

(''J. regani''). Similar ND2 DNA has been found in these and '' T. bifrenatus'', '' T. brichardi'' and '' T. temporalis''. '' T. vittatus'' on the other hand has a ND2 DNA sequence resembling that of '' Lamprologus congoensis'' and '' L. teugelsi''. But ''T. vittatus'' does not at all appear very similar to these species, and in fact may well be closer to ''T. bifrenatus'' and ''T. brichardi'' than to ''T. temporalis''. That would mean that male ancestors of ''T. vittatus'' had successfully interbred with female ''

Lamprologus ''Lamprologus'' is a genus of fishes from the cichlid Cichlids are fish from the family Cichlidae in the order Cichliformes. Cichlids were traditionally classed in a suborder, the Labroidei, along with the wrasses ( Labridae), in the order P ...

'' after the lineage of the former had diverged from its relatives.

Species

There are currently six recognized species in this genus: * '' Telmatochromis bifrenatus'' G. S. Myers, 1936 * '' Telmatochromis brachygnathus'' Hanssens & Snoeks, 2003 * '' Telmatochromis brichardi'' Louisy, 1989 * '' Telmatochromis dhonti'' ( Boulenger, 1919) * ''

Telmatochromis temporalis ''Telmatochromis temporalis'' is a species of cichlid endemic to Lake Tanganyika where they areas with rocky substrates usually at depths of from though occasionally down to . This species can reach a length of TL. It can also be found in ...

'' Boulenger, 1898 * '' Telmatochromis vittatus'' Boulenger, 1898

References

Lamprologini Cichlid genera Taxa named by George Albert Boulenger {{Lamprologini-stub