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Mastacembelus apectoralis Brown, Britz, Bills, Rüber & Day, 2011

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drawing shows typical species in Mastacembelidae.

Zambia country information

Common names: [No common name]
Occurrence: endemic
Salinity: freshwater
Abundance: | Ref:
Importance: | Ref:
Aquaculture: | Ref:
Regulations: | Ref:
Uses: live export: yes;
Comments: Type locality of the holotype of Mastacembelus apectoralis: 'Cape Kachese, LT, northern Zambia (08°29'17.24"S, 30°28'28.12"E)' (Ref. 86808). Known from Lake Tanganyika (Ref. 86808).
National Checklist:
Country Information: https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/resources/the-world-factbook/geos/za.html
National Fisheries Authority:
Occurrences: Occurrences Point map
Main Ref: Brown, K.J., R. Britz, R. Bills, L. Rüber and J.J. Day, 2011
National Database:

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Classification / Names Common names | Synonyms | Catalog of Fishes(genus, species) | ITIS | CoL | WoRMS | Cloffa

Teleostei (teleosts) > Synbranchiformes (Spiny eels) > Mastacembelidae (Spiny eels)
Etymology: Mastacembelus: Greek, mastax, -agos = bite + Greek, emballo = to throw oneself (Ref. 45335);  apectoralis: The species name, apectoralis, an adjective, alludes to the absence of pectoral fins, and is formed from the Latin 'a', meaning without, and 'pectoralis', a Latinized version of pectoral (Ref. 86808).

Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range Ecology

Freshwater; benthopelagic; depth range 3 - 7 m (Ref. 86808).   Tropical

Distribution Countries | FAO areas | Ecosystems | Occurrences | Point map | Introductions | Faunafri

Africa: Lake Tanganyika in Zambia (Ref. 86808).

Size / Weight / Age

Maturity: Lm ?  range ? - ? cm
Max length : 16.3 cm SL male/unsexed; (Ref. 86808)

Short description Identification keys | Morphology | Morphometrics

Dorsal spines (total): 32 - 34; Dorsal soft rays (total): 58 - 69; Anal spines: 3; Anal soft rays: 66 - 67; Vertebrae: 77 - 80. Diagnosis: Mastacembelus apectoralis differs from all other mastacembelid species by the absence of pectoral fins (Ref. 86808). It is endemic to Lake Tanganyika and is placed within the Lake Tanganyika species flock; it differs from other members of this radiation by a near absence of scales, present only on the margin of the caudal peduncle and between caudal-fin rays, a very short rostral appendage and well-developed adductor mandibulae muscles forming a distinctive head shape; the lack of pigmentation distinguishes this species from all other Tanganyikan species, with the exception of M. micropectus and M. cunningtoni, although the latter species has a distinctive dark spot on the caudal and pectoral fins; both M. apectoralis and its sister species, M. micropectus, lack teeth on the palatine; Mastacembelus apectoralis has 32-34 dorsal spines, and based on this count, is distinguished from five other species in the Lake Tanganyika flock, M. platysoma, M. zebratus, M. polli, M. cunningtoni and M. moorii, which have fewer spines, 21-29; however, all other Lake Tanganyika species have overlapping spine count ranges, 24-38, at least in part with that of M. apectoralis; vertebral counts of M. apectoralis, 77-80, are in the region of those of M. micropectus and M. albomaculatus, are greater than M. zebratus, but are lower than other Tanganyikan species (Ref. 86808).

Biology     Glossary (e.g. epibenthic)

Found in a complex rocky habitat, consisting of multiple layers of rock, at a depth of 3-7 m (Ref. 86808).

Life cycle and mating behavior Maturities | Reproduction | Spawnings | Egg(s) | Fecundities | Larvae

Main reference Upload your references | References | Coordinator | Collaborators

Brown, K.J., R. Britz, R. Bills, L. Rüber and J.J. Day, 2011. Pectoral fin loss in the Mastacembelidae: a new species from Lake Tanganyika. J. Zool. 284(4):286-293. (Ref. 86808)

IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435)

  Not Evaluated 

CITES (Ref. 128078)

Not Evaluated

CMS (Ref. 116361)

Not Evaluated

Threat to humans

  Harmless




Human uses

FAO(Publication : search) | FishSource |

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Estimates based on models

Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref. 82804):  PD50 = 0.5000   [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.00257 (0.00122 - 0.00544), b=2.97 (2.79 - 3.15), in cm Total Length, based on LWR estimates for this (Sub)family-body shape (Ref. 93245).
Trophic level (Ref. 69278):  3.6   ±0.6 se; based on size and trophs of closest relatives
Resilience (Ref. 120179):  High, minimum population doubling time less than 15 months (Preliminary K or Fecundity.).
Fishing Vulnerability (Ref. 59153):  Low vulnerability (10 of 100).