A new species of Gymnogeophagus Miranda Ribeiro from Uruguay (Teleostei: Cichliformes)

• Main Authors: Marcelo Loureiro, Matías Zarucki, Luiz R. Malabarba, Iván González-Bergonzoni
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Sociedade Brasileira de Ictiologia
• Series: Neotropical Ichthyology
• Subjects: Cichlidae; Gymnogeophagus meridionalis; Gymnogeophagus rhabdotus; Substrate brooding; Systematics
• Online Access: http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S1679-62252016000100215&lng=en&tlng=en

ABSTRACT We describe a new species of a substrate-brooding Gymnogeophagus , based on coloration characters. The new species can be distinguished from the remaining substrate-brooding species in the genus by the unique pigmentation of the dorsal fin which consists of light blue, diagonal stripes over a red background in the spiny section and a combination of round, elliptic, and elongated bright blue spots over a red background in the soft section. It can be further distinguished from all other species of Gymnogeophagus by the following combination of characters: a discontinuous bright blue band above the upper lateral line in the humeral area, light blue roundish spots over a red to orange background on the anal fin, and conspicuous bright blue horizontal bands on body. The new species inhabits a wide range of freshwater habitats in the lower rio Uruguay basin, Rio de la Plata coastal drainages and Atlantic Ocean coastal drainages in Uruguay.