Marcusenius macrolepidotus ( Peters, 1852 )

Kramer, Bernd & Wink, Michael, 2013, East-west differentiation in the Marcusenius macrolepidotus species complex in Southern Africa: the description of a new species for the lower Cunene River, Namibia (Teleostei: Mormyridae), Journal of Natural History (J. Nat. Hist.) 47 (35 - 36), pp. 2327-2362 : 2343-2344

Marcusenius macrolepidotus ( Peters, 1852)

( Figure 4A )

Nominal species in bold face.

Mormyrus macrolepidotus Peters, 1852 a, p. 275 .

Mormyrops macrolepidotus: Marcusen 1864, p. 142 .

Gnathonemus macrolepidotus: Boulenger 1898, p. 804 .

Gnathonemus macrolepidotus macrolepidotus: Poll and Gosse 1963, p. 93 .

Marcusenius macrolepidotus: Taverne 1971a, p. 103 .

Gnathonemus okavangensis Pappenheim 1907, p. 354 , nomen dubium.

Gnathonemus moeruensis Boulenger, 1915, p. 163 ; Jackson 1961, p. 32 (most probably a subspecies of Gnathonemus macrolepidotus )

Marcusenius moeruensis: Taverne 1971a, p. 102 .

Gnathonemus graeverti Steindachner, 1914, p. 536 (in full: Steindachner 1916); Matthes 1967, p. 4 (synonymy with Gnathonemus macrolepidotus ). Marcusenius graeverti: Taverne 1971a, p. 103 .

Type specimens

ZMB 3678 (lectotype L. Seegers 13.04.1993) from Tete, Lower Zambezi , Mozambique, with paralectotypes ZMB 6730 (one specimen), 3677 (one specimen), and 32043 (three specimens; Seegers, 1996), all examined .

Non-types, examined:

– Lower Zambezi System: SAIAB 60847 , coll: Bills R., 1 August 1999, tributary of the Lower Zambezi in the delta region, southeast of Marromeu , 18 ◦ 33’54” S, 35 ◦ 39’46” E, 81 specimens, size range 52–104 mm SL, locality 2 on Figure 1 ,

– Buzi System: SAIAB 67369 , coll: Bills R., 29 September 2002, first tributary of the Lucite River leaving Dombe Nyangapwa Stream , which is part of the middle Buzi River System , on the road east of Dombe , Manica Province, 19 ◦ 58’00” S, 33 ◦ 24’52” E, 25 specimens, size range 70–143 mm SL, locality 3 on Figure 1 ,

– Five live specimens from the Buzi System, same location as SAIAB 67369, R. Bills coll., arrived 8 October 2002 in Regensburg , Germany, studied for EOD and meristic characters, size range 79–88 mm SL, still alive .

– Samples examined for genetics. DNA samples are stored at Institute of Pharmacy and Molecular Biotechnology , Heidelberg University ( IPMB). IPMB 22682 , 22684 , 22685 ( SAIAB 67369 ), Mozambique: Buzi System : Lucite River: Nyangapwa Stream, 19 ◦ 58 ′ 00” S, 33 ◦ 24 ′ 52” E, coll. R . Bills, S. Chimela and A. Chivindzi, 29 September 2002; IPMB 22686 ( SAIAB 61592 ), Mozambique: Lower Zambezi : Marromeu, 18 ◦ 17 ′ S, 35 ◦ 57 ′ E, coll. R . Bills, 11 August 1999; IPMB 22689 ( SAIAB 61603 ), Mozambique: Lower Zambezi : Lagoon behind sugar fields, 18 ◦ 19 ′ S, 35 ◦ 55 ′ E, coll. R . Bills, 13 August 1999; GenBank accession numbers: ( KC 202222 - KC 202226 ) .

Type locality

Mozambique: Lower Zambezi: Tete (no. 1, Figure 1 ), and tributaries to the Lower Zambezi, also Licuare River (Zambezi delta region). For more detail, Kramer et al. (2007) .

Since Taverne’s (1971b) major revision of several genera of the Mormyridae , there are no members of Gnathonemus in southern Africa. Two subspecies of M. macrolepidotus were recognized ( Poll and Gosse 1963): M. m. macrolepidotus and M. m. angolensis , listed by Gosse (1984). Based on morphology, Kramer et al. (2007) resurrected the latter subspecies as a valid species, and in consequence dropped the former subspecies. The origin of G. moeruensis Boulenger 1915 , a single specimen from Lake Mweru in the Democratic Republic of Congo ( Zaïre)/ Zambia, west of Lake Tanganyika, forms part of the Lualaba/ Congo drainage system, and from morphology the synonymization appears questionable to Kramer et al. (2007). Also synonymized with G. macrolepidotus was G. graeverti Steindachner 1914 whose origin is the Ruaha, an east-flowing river south of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania; the unique holotype is lost; the synonymization is questionable ( Kramer et al. 2007). G. okavangensis Pappenheim 1907 is “not available”.

Figures

Figure 1. Map of sampling locations in southern Africa. (A) Type locality for Marcusenius macrolepidotus (Peters, 1852), Tete on the Lower Zambezi River; (B) origin of M. macrolepidotus, SAIAB 60847, from Marromeu, Lower Zambezi delta (Figure 4A); (C) origin of M. macrolepidotus from the Buzi System, same location as SAIAB 67369, presently alive in aquarium; (D) likely type region for Marcusenius angolensis (Boulenger, 1905), the Lower Quanza; (E) Marcusenius altisambesi Kramer et al., 2007, type locality on the Upper Zambezi River; (F) M. altisambesi from the Kwando River; (G) M. altisambesi from the Okavango delta; (H, I) Marcusenius multisquamatus sp. nov., stretching from below the Ruacana Falls to above the Epupa Falls (I), the type locality; (J) specimens from the Cunene River Mouth.

Figure 4. Photographs of bulldog fish from various origins. (A) Marcusenius macrolepidotus (Peters, 1852), SAIAB 60847, coll. R. Bills 1 August 1999, Lower Zambezi; (B) Marcusenius angolensis (Boulenger, 1905), BMNH 1905.5.29.64 (holotype); (C) Marcusenius altisambesi, coll. F. H. van der Bank and B. Kramer, 21 August 1999, Upper Zambezi, Kalimbeza, live specimen of 16.5 cm SL photographed 3 July 2003 in aquarium; (D) M. altisambesi, coll. F.H. van der Bank and B. Kramer, 11/12 August 2004, Okavango River, live fish of SL 13 cm photographed 20 April 2006 in aquarium; (E) Marcusenius multisquamatus sp. nov., coll. B. Kramer and Ernst Swartz, coll. and photographed on 19 August 2006, Cunene River, below Ruacana Falls, specimen RUAC01, SL 15.4 cm.