Mormyrops (Mormyrops) oudoti Daget, 1954
Species overview
Smaller fish, body elongate, moderately deep, head with straight upper profile and concave underside, snout looking like a duck bill or horse-like in side view, but strongly laterally compressed seen from above, snout slightly protruding mouth. Purplish black, throat and belly brighter. Size observed: 321 mm SL.
M. oudoti(measurements)
Taxonomic description
-Body elongate, moderately compressed, body depth 16-18 % SL, greatest depth between pelvic and anal fin.
-Head length 27 % SL, head depth 12-13 % SL, 70-86 % body depth.
-Outlines of back and belly more or less straight, upper profile of head mole straight, underside of head concave.
-Snout long, quite compressed, looking like a duck-bill in side view, 23-28 % head length, 32-38 % postorbital length.
-Mouth small, 8-10 % head length, 29-43 % snout length, slightly subterminal, its edge extending to level of posterior nostril, edge of upper jaw on a level with lower edge of opercular cleft.
-Chin with moderate submental swelling, upper part of snout much deeper than lower jaw.
-Teeth notched, in closed lines, 12/11.
-Nostrils separate, circular, much closer to each other than to rim of eye: distance between nostrils 6-10 % snout length, distance posterior nostril to eye 53-65 % snout length, both on a level with lower rim of eye, their axis running parallel to axis of snout.
-Eye laterally to the head, small, its diameter 3-5 % head length, 4-7 % postorbital length.
-Opercular cleft curved, 23-28 % head length, 47-64 % head depth.
-Dorsal fin 35 fin-rays, base of D 24-28 % SL, anal fin 45 rays, base of A 31-32 % SL, origin of D behind A, end of D slightly before end A; predorsal length 63-64 % SL, preanal length 56-58 % SL.
-Pectoral fin rounded, extending to half its distance from pelvic fin. V is slightly closer to P than to A, distance P to V 13-15 % SL, V to A 13-18 % SL.
-Caudal fin rounded, the scaled lobes rounded, covering 1/2 of the fin. 108 scales in lateral line; 20 round caudal peduncle.
-Caudal peduncle moderate, 11-14 % SL, its depth 4-5 % SL, 32 42 % its length.
-Coloration Purplish-black, throat and belly brighter.
Type locality
»Bamako, Niger River« (12° 38 ‘ N 8° 00 ‘ W) Mali.
Distribution
Type locality.