Teleocichla is a genus of fish in the family Cichlidae found in the Tapajós, Xingu, Tocantins and Jari River basins, which are part of the Amazon River Basin in Brazil. All species are rheophilic, and highly elongated in shape.[1] They generally are smaller than 9 cm (3.5 in) in length,[2] making them some of the smallest cichlids of the Americas. Only T. preta can grow larger, reaching about 12 cm (4.7 in).[3] Since restricted to areas with fast currents (such as cataracts and rapids), they are particularly vulnerable to the building of dams,[3] and the Belo Monte Dam may cause the extinction of T. centisquama.[4] Other species recognized as threatened by Brazil's Ministry of the Environment are T. cinderella, T. prionogenys and T. wajapi.[5]

Teleocichla
Teleocichla prionogenys
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Cichliformes
Family: Cichlidae
Subfamily: Cichlinae
Genus: Teleocichla
Kullander, 1988
Type species
Teleocichla centrarchus
Kullander, 1988

Species

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There are currently 9 recognized species in this genus,[2] but several undescribed species are known.[3]

References

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  1. ^ a b Varella, H.R.; Moreira, C.R. (2013). "Teleocichla wajapi, a new species of cichlid from the rio Jari, Brazil, with comments on T. centrarchus Kullander, 1988 (Teleostei: Cichlidae)" (PDF). Zootaxa. 3641 (2): 177–187.
  2. ^ a b Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.). "Species in genus Teleocichla". FishBase. January 2016 version.
  3. ^ a b c d Varella, H.R.; Zuanon, J.; Kullander, S.O.; López-Fernández, H. (2016). "Teleocichla preta, a new species of cichlid from the Rio Xingu Basin in Brazil (Teleostei: Cichlidae)". Journal of Fish Biology. 89 (3): 1551–1569. doi:10.1111/jfb.13053/abstract.
  4. ^ Instituto Chico Mendes de Conservação da Biodiversidade (ICMBio) (2022). "Teleocichla centisquama". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (in Portuguese). 2022: e.T167711A141130682. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2022-2.RLTS.T167711A141130682.pt.
  5. ^ "Portaria MMA nº 445, de 17 de dezembro de 2014. Lista de Especies Ameaçadas - Saiba Mais" (PDF). ICMBio. Ministry of the Environment, Brazil. ISSN 1677-7042. Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 August 2021.