Herichthys carpintis var. Short Body - Texas Short Body (Jordan & Snyder, 1899)

Not a pet, but the picture was taken in a pet shop and the individual was not under sale. No product nor the fish were acquired or bought, and the picture I took was merely for educational purposes in benefit of the species depicted. If, even then, it is not allowed please take it down. If you can let me know first, I will be thankful.

Osteichthyes: Actinopterygii: Neopterygii: ... : Acanthopterygii: Perciformes (Cichliformes?): Labroidei: Cichlidae: Cichlasomatinae: Heroini

Size: The subject portrayed measured around 13 or 14cm in length and around 9cm in height.

Variation: Short Body.

Sex: ♂ (???)

19th of March, 2018 at 04:04:09pm.

Herichthys carpintis can be found in their area of distribution in harder waters with a pH of 7,5 to 9 and temperatures between 18ºC and 28ºC, which varies among seasons. They can inhabit transparent waters with visibility inferior to 1 meter.

They are also known as lowland cichlid, pearlscale cichlid, Texas blue or green Texas cichlid.

This is a Herichthys carpintis of the variation "Short Body" commonly known as Texas Short Body and belongs in the superclass Osteichthyes, class Actinopterygii, subclass Neopterygii, superorder Acanthopterygii, order Perciformes (Cichliformes?), suborder Labroidei, family Cichlidae, subfamily Cichlasomatinae and tribe Heroini. Bear in mind that this taxonomy was very confusing and there may be mistakes, not to mention that I skipped plenty of subdivisions within Neopterygii to make this shorter. If you saw any mistakes, please warn me so I can change this text accordingly. All I ask is for you to provide a reliable source to your correction of my mistake. "Guesses" or speculations won't make me immediately change the text, but are welcome.

Apparently, the subject portrayed is a male but through a picture it's hard to tell with 100% precision. Some females look a lot like the males, with many being mistaken for each other. The differentiation is more reliable by annalyzing the behaviour or through the observation of the sexual and excretory organs through a process called "venting" after the subject reaches sexual maturity. In general, the males are larger than the females and display a characteristic black spot on the center of the dorsal fin, but this can't be used to differentiate the sex of these fishes with 100% reliability.

Sexual maturity is reached after the fish reaches around 10cm. They will try to reproduce as soon as the sexual maturity is achieved and will search for a smooth surface to lay the eggs. More than 800 eggs can be laid. The offspring are transferred between sites in crevices multiple times by the female to fend off predators. Both the males and the females will guard the offsprings for around 8 weeks.

This species is somewhat aggressive and are known to provoke problems with other creatures even when they are bigger than them, which may result in the death of the Herichthys carpintis, although this behaviour is more often seen when they are under captivity.

They are omnivorous and feed on debris, vegetable matter (they are diggers and will uproot vegetation), other fishes, small insects, gastropods, and so on.

This species is polymorphic, meaning they can present various patterns depending on their zone of distribution, which includes the Eastern coast of Mexico, until the Rio Soto La Marina to the North, and to the South until the Panuco's River Bay, Laguna de Tamiahua. They have been introduced in many places.

They live around 8 years under captivity. This expectancy is usually halved in nature. The individual portrayed measured approximately 13 or 14cm in length and approximately 9cm in height.

Sources:

http://www.ciclideos.com/herichthys-carpintis-f195.html
http://www.aquarismopaulista.com/texas-blue-herichthys-carpintis/
http://www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polymorphism_(biology
http://www.seriouslyfish.com/species/herichthys-carpintis/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herichthys_carpintis
http://eol.org/pages/215334/overview