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Colour polymorphism in the males of an African cichlid fish
Author(s) -
Heiligenberg Walter
Publication year - 1965
Publication title -
proceedings of the zoological society of london
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.915
H-Index - 96
eISSN - 1469-7998
pISSN - 0370-2774
DOI - 10.1111/j.1469-7998.1965.tb05202.x
Subject(s) - cichlid , captivity , biology , zoology , fish <actinopterygii> , fishery
A species of the cichlid genus Pelmatochromis recently imported from West Africa has been observed in captivity and was bred several times. Whereas the females of the imported species all looked alike the males differed in respect of two colour patterns:1 the number of eye spots in the tail fin is constant throughout the individual's life but varies between 0 and 5 among different individuals; 1 some males always become red on the whole underside of the belly when courting (type 1) others become red on the hind part of the belly only (type 2).There is strong evidence that these differences in coloration are genetically determined.