Spotted lungfish
| Spotted African lungfish | |
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| Species: | P. dolloi
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| Protopterus dolloi | |
The spotted African lungfish or slender lungfish (Protopterus dolloi) is a species of lungfish from Middle Africa, where found in the Congo, Kouilou-Niari and Ogowe river basins.[1][3] It is one of four extant species in the genus Protopterus.
Habitat
The slender lungfish is a freshwater fish and it largely inhabits the middle and lower Congo River basin.[3] It is a primarily demersal fish, dwelling in the riverbeds of the above basins and in Stanley Pool.[3][4] During spawning season, females can be found in open water.[3][4]
Biology
The slender lungfish has an anguilliform body, much like an eel.[3] The body of the slender lungfish is generally brown; young of the species oftentimes have black spots throughout the body, however adults generally lose these spots as they age.[3] Like all African lungfish the slender lungfish is an obligate air-breather and is capable of aestivation; however, it generally does not aestivate.[3]
Reproduction
Spotted African lungfish nests are generally found in June through October.[4] During this time period the male makes a nest and buries it in mud, not unlike the Marbled lungfish mating behavior.[4] He guards both eggs and larvae during this time.[3][4] The female does not take care of the young but rather during this time can be found open water in rivers within its range.[3]
References
- ^ a b Template:IUCN2008 P. dolloi has been assessed as Least Concern because it has a very large range, and there are no known widespread threats to the species.
- ^ ITIS.gov
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel, eds. (2014). "Protopterus dolloi". FishBase.
- ^ a b c d e "Protopterus dolloi (Slender lungfish, Slender lungfish (FB))". www.iucnredlist.org. Retrieved 2015-06-05.
Further reading
- [1]
- http://jeb.biologists.org/cgi/reprint/207/5/777
- Fishman, A. P., Pack, A. I., Delaney, R. G. and Gallante, R. J. (1987). Estivation in Protopterus. In The Biology and Evolution of Lungfishes(ed.) W. E. Bemis, W. W. Burggren and N. E. Kemp), pp. 163–179. New York: Alan R. Liss, Inc.
