Mormyrops (Mormyrops) breviceps Steindachner, 1895
Species overview
Large-sized fish, body much elongate, low, moderately laterally compressed, head moderately tapering with short, depressed snout with a pointed end when seen from above; caudal peduncle rather deep and long; uniform dark. Size observed: 650 mm TL.
M. breviceps(measurements)
Taxonomic description
-Body much elongate. moderately laterally compressed, cross section oblong-oval, body depth 8-14 % SL, greatest depth between pectoral and pelvic fin.
-Head length 20-25 % SL, head depth 8-14 % SL, 77-98 % body depth.
-Outline of back more or less straight, parallel to outline of belly; upper profile of head feebly to clearly concave, underside of head feebly concave.
-Snout rounded, feebly protruding mouth, end of snout, in side-view, steep, in top view pointed, its length 17-23 % head length, 22-33 % postorbital length.
-Mouth 12-18 % head length, slightly subterminal, its edge below posterior nostril, upper jaw on a level with upper edge base of pectoral fin.
-Chin with moderate submental swelling, lower jaw less deep than upper part of snout.
-Teeth truncate or slightly notched, 17-24/15-24.
-Nostrils separate, much closer to end of snout than to eye, distance between nostrils 10-19 % length of snout, between posterior nostril and eye 39-64 % length of snout; posterior nostril oval , both nostrils on a level with above centre of eye, axis of nostrils running parallel to axis of head or slightly tilted forward.
-Eye diameter 4-7 % head length, 6-9 % postorbital length.
-Opercular cleft curved, 23-32 % head length, 39-67 % head depth.
-Dorsal fin 27-33 fin-rays, base of D 17-28 % SL, anal fin 41-51 rays, base of A 32-41 % SL, origin of D well behind end of A, end of D before end of A; predorsal length 60-68 % SL, preanal length 53-59 % SL.
-Pectoral fin obtusely pointed, its base very close to the opercular cleft, in length extending over about half its distance from pelvic fin. V is closer to P than to A.
-Caudal fin rounded, scaled lobes extending over 3/4 of the entire fin. 82-109 scales in lateral line; 12-18 round caudal peduncle.
-Caudal peduncle 7-11 % SL, its depth 3-5 % SL, 30-46 % its length.
-Coloration »Uniform dark«.
Type locality
M. bougouribaensis: »Riv. Bougouriba, affl. Volta Noire, Haute Volta. Upper Volta.
M. breviceps: »?aus dem St. Paul-Flusse«. Liberia (Saint Paul River 6° 23 ‘ N 10° 48 ‘ W)
M. elongatus: »Ejura« Ashanti Forest, Gold Coast (Ejura 6° 45 ‘ N 1° 30 ‘ W)
Distribution
Volta basin, rivers of Ivory Coast and Ghana, some rivers of Liberia and Guinea-Bissau, (Saint Paul River, Mano and Culufi Rivers), probably present in a coastal stripe from the Volta to Guinea-Bissau.(Mano R. 6° 56 ‘ N 11° 31 ‘ W).