Classification / Names
Common names | Synonyms | Catalog of Fishes(genus, species) | ITIS | CoL | WoRMS | Cloffa
Teleostei (teleosts) >
Cichliformes (Cichlids, convict blennies) >
Cichlidae (Cichlids) > Pseudocrenilabrinae
Etymology: Haplochromis: Greek, Haploos = single + Greek, chromis = a fish, perhaps a perch (Ref. 45335); erutus: Specific name noun in apposition from Latin erutus, torn out, and refers to its oral-shelling ecology, in which soft bodies of snails are wrenched or torn out of their shells (Ref. 126074).
Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range
Ecology
Freshwater; pelagic. Tropical
Africa: endemic to Lake Edward (Ref. 126074).
Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm ? range ? - ? cm
Max length : 8.3 cm SL male/unsexed; (Ref. 126074)
Short description
Identification keys | Morphology | Morphometrics
Dorsal spines (total): 15 - 16; Dorsal soft rays (total): 8 - 10; Anal spines: 3; Anal soft rays: 7 - 9; Vertebrae: 29 - 30. Diagnosis: Haplochromis erutus differs from all other species of Haplochromis, except H. bicolor from Lake Victoria, by a small and rectangular mouth with a short upper jaw that curves downwards halfway its length, in combination with blunt, bicuspid and recurved outer oral teeth and, in lateral part of upper jaw, more stout inner teeth, mostly more distinct in dextral side; it differs from H. bicolor by much larger eyes, 35.4-40.7% of head length vs. 21.4-32.0%, slightly more slender interorbital width, 22.5-26.1% of head length vs. 25.8-34.5%, and slightly shorter snout, 23.2-27.1% of head length vs. 26.5-34.2; it differs further by a shallower supraoccipital crest, dominant males with beige-silver vs. red flanks and piebald colouration seemingly absent in H. erutus, while frequently observed in females of H. bicolor (Ref. 126074). Within Lake Edward system, it shares with H. concilians, H. labiatus, H. eduardianus and H. planus stout jaws and large or more strongly developed lips; it differs from H. labiatus by a shorter snout, 22.4-25.4% of head length vs. 26.5-30.2%, and large vs. lobed lips; from H. eduardianus and H. planus by a shorter upper jaw, 20.9-26.% of head length vs. 27.5-33.8% and 27.6-32.1% respectively; and from H. concilians by large vs. strongly thickened lips, a longer premaxillary pedicel, 21.4-24.0% of head length vs. 16.1-21.6%, and beige-silver vs. silver-blue dominant males (Ref. 126074).
Diet mainly mollucivorous (Ref. 126074).
Life cycle and mating behavior
Maturities | Reproduction | Spawnings | Egg(s) | Fecundities | Larvae
Vranken, N., M. Van Steenberge and J. Snoeks, 2020. Similar ecology, different morphology: three new species of oral-mollusc shellers from Lake Edward. J. Fish Biol. 96(5):1202-1217. (Ref. 126074)
IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435)
Threat to humans
Harmless
Human uses
Tools
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Internet sources
Estimates based on models
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref.
82804): PD
50 = No PD50 data [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Trophic level (Ref.
69278): 3.3 ±0.4 se; based on size and trophs of closest relatives
Resilience (Ref.
120179): High, minimum population doubling time less than 15 months (Preliminary K or Fecundity.).
Fishing Vulnerability (Ref.
59153): Low vulnerability (10 of 100).
