Edit Cyprinodon desquamator
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Name
Scientific name
Cyprinodon desquamator
Described by
Authority Martin & Wainwright, Year 2013
Family
Cyprinodontidae
Common names
Scale-eating pupfish
Photograph credits
All 3 credited
Summary
The scale-eating pupfish, Cyprinodon desquamator, is a pupfish endemic to six hypersaline lakes on San Salvador Island in the Bahamas. A sp…
Size and aquarium
Maximum size
31mm, standard length
Aquarium size
Not recorded
Water
Water conditions
Not recorded
Hardness
Not recorded
Conductivity
Not recorded
Behaviour
Temperament
Not recorded
Social needs
A shoal or group
Community suitability
Not for a community
Where it lives
Countries, regions, rivers and lakes
Bahamas
Writing
Etymology
Cyprinodon: from the Ancient Greek κυπρῖνος (kuprinos), meaning 'carp', and ὀδούς (odous), meaning 'tooth'. desquamator: from the Latin squamare, meaning 'one …
Distribution
Endemic to San Salvador Island in the Bahamas where it's known from six hypersaline lakes; Crescent Pond, Osprey Lake, Oyster Lake, Little Lake, Mermaid Pond a…
Habitat
The lakes inhabited by this species are shallow and rarely exceed 3 metres in depth, with the fish most abundant in mats of macroalgae (Batophora, Acetabularia…
Aquarium size
Not written yet
Maintenance
Not written yet
Water conditions
Not written yet
Diet
This species is a specialised lepidophage with approximately 50 % of the diet comprising the scales of other fishes. Physical adaptations to this behaviour inc…
Behaviour and compatibility
Not written yet
Sexual dimorphism
Mature males possess a metallic blue anterodorsal region but lack the typical black margin on the caudal-fin, this being replaced by black pigmentation on the …
Reproduction
Males have been observed guarding breeding in water of 0.05 to 1 m depth, and although breeding has been observed year-round it seems to be most common in summ…
Notes
This species was referred to as C. sp. 'lepidophage' or C. sp. 'scale-eater' prior to description. It differs from congeners by possession of large supra-termi…
References
References
3 on this profile