| Amphiliidae (Loach catfishes), subfamily: Leptoglaninae |
| 3.77 cm SL (male/unsexed); 4.12 cm SL (female) |
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benthopelagic; freshwater |
| Africa: widespread in the tributaries of middle and lower Zambezi River, tributaries of Lake Malawi, Pungwe River, Buzi River and Save River (Ref. 86935, 94654). |
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Dorsal spines (total): 2-2; Dorsal soft rays (total): 6-7; Anal spines: 0-0; Anal soft rays: 10-12; Vertebrae: 35-38. Diagnosis: This species differs from Zaireichthys conspicuus, Z. lacustris and Z. maravensis in the narrow premaxillary tooth patch and the long lateral line, extending beyond base of anal fin; from Z. kunenensis in the narrower premaxillary tooth patch and the greater number of branched caudal rays, 14-16 vs. 11-14; from Z. kavangoensis in the longer lateral line, extending beyond anal fin and usually past adipose vs. above anterior to middle of anal fin; from Z. kafuensis and Z. pallidus in the longer lateral line and the greater number of caudal rays, 14-16 vs. 9-13, and pectoral-fin rays, 7-8 vs. 5-7 (Ref. 86935).
Description: Lateral line long, reaching beyond end of base of anal fin and usually past end of adipose; snout bluntly rounded, not protruding much beyond mouth; eye moderate; mouth less than half head width; barbels moderate or long, the maxillary reaching to the bases of the branched pectoral-fin rays (Ref. 86935). Dorsal fin II,6-7, usually 6; caudal fin moderately emarginate and with lower lobe usually appreciably longer than the upper, with 14-16 branched rays, with 6-7 in the upper and 8-9 in the lower lobe; anal fin with 10-12 rays, the first 4-6 simple; pectoral fins with 7-8, usually 7 branched rays, the spine bearing 5-9 barbs (Ref. 86935). Premaxillary tooth patch narrow and subrectangular; branchiostegal rays 6-8, usually 7; vertebrae 35-38, usually 37, plus the ural complex, the first haemal spine on the 14th-15th, usually 15th; ribs 6-8, usually 7, pairs, parapophyses often forked basally; humeral process pointed, usually ending about midway between supraoccipital process and first dorsal spine (Ref. 86935).
Colouration: Ground colour pale brownish; head brownish; a series of darker bars across the dorsal surface of the body, often with paler centres on the lateral parts; about eight dark patches, often elongated, mid-laterally along the flanks, the first below the dorsal fin and the last at the end of the caudal peduncle; a third series of small faint spots ventro-laterally from above the pelvic to the caudal peduncle (Ref. 86935). |
| Found in flowing water with a sandy substrate; they do not adapt to dams and do not occur in Lake Kariba (Ref. 94654). They partly bury themselves in the sand, leaving only the head exposed, and snap at particles of food, such as minute aquatic animals (Ref. 94654). |
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Least Concern (LC); Date assessed: 22 May 2018 Ref. (130435)
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| harmless |
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