Herichthys Baird and Girard 1854

Mcmahan, Caleb D., Matamoros, Wilfredo A., Piller, Kyle R. & Chakrabarty, Prosanta, 2015, Taxonomy and systematics of the herichthyins (Cichlidae: Tribe Heroini), with the description of eight new Middle American Genera, Zootaxa 3999 (2), pp. 211-234 : 219-220

Genus Herichthys Baird and Girard 1854

( Fig. 6 )

Inclusive species. H. cyanoguttatus (type species), H. carpintis , H. deppii , H. minckleyi , H. tamasopoensis , H. tepehua , H. teporatus .

Diagnosis. Herichthys is diagnosed by six to seven vertical bars (often at the posterior of the body) with dark blotches below the upper lateral line. Breeding coloration includes a darkened color ventrally on lateral portions of the body with light- or gray-colored markings on the dorsum. The anteriormost teeth in the upper jaw are spatulate, chisel-like, or bicuspid.

Distribution. Rivers of the Atlantic slope of Mexico and the Río Grande drainage of the United States (Texas) and Mexico.

Comments. Our diagnostic characteristics for Herichthys follow De la Maza-Beningnos et al. (2015) based on their recent revision of the group. Herichthys (before it was divided into Herichthys and Nosferatu ) was largely diagnosed by the shared color pattern of bars and/or blotches along the lateral sides of the body, and a breeding coloration consisting of a dark ventral portion and a lighter dorsal portion of the body ( Oldfield et al. 2015). As recognized here, following De la Maza-Beningnos et al. (2015), the traditional breeding coloration characters delineate these clades, but with slight differences in the extent of coloration between Herichthys and Nosferatu . Our molecular analysis supports the monophyly of Herichthys and its sister relationship with Nosferatu . At the species level within Herichthys , none of the species in the genus are recovered as monophyletic in De la Maza- Benignos et al. (2015). Status and validity of the species within this genus are in need of further study.

Material examined. H. carpintis , UMMZ 234903 [n=10, Mexico: Río Paunuco]; H. cyanoguttata , UMMZ 92313 [n=4, Mexico: Arroyo Marmolejo], FMNH 4435 [n=9, Mexico: Río Camacho]; H. minckleyi , UMMZ 130395 [n=15 (Paratypes), Mexico: Cuatro Cienegas], UMMZ 211734 [n=15, Mexico: Cuatro Cienegas]; H. tamasopoensis , UMMZ 193513 [n=15, Mexico: Río Tamasopo], UMMZ 196699 [n=15, Mexico: Río Panuco].

Figures

FIGURE 6. Herichthys cyanoguttatus, FMNH 4435, 114.41 mm SL.