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Characiformes (Characins) >
Alestidae (African tetras)
Etymology: Petersius: In naming Petersius Hilgendorf (1894) honored the naturalist and curator Wilhelm C.H. Peters of the Museum für Naturkunde, Berlin (Ref. 127953).
Eponymy: Wilhelm Karl Hartwig Peters (1815–1883) was a German zoologist and traveller who made some very important collections in Mozambique. [...] (Ref. 128868), visit book page.
More on author: Hilgendorf.
Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range
Ecology
Freshwater; pelagic. Tropical; 22°C - 26°C (Ref. 2059)
Africa: endemic to lowland regions of the Ruvu and Rufiji rivers in the Pwani Region of eastern Tanzania (Ref. 4967, 127953).
Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm ? range ? - ? cm
Max length : 14.5 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 42032)
Dorsal spines (total): 0; Dorsal soft rays (total): 10; Anal spines: 0; Anal soft rays: 21 - 23; Vertebrae: 36 - 37. Diagnosis: This species is diagnosed by a unique cuspidation pattern of the inner row premaxillary dentition with the cusps of the cutting-edge oriented buccally, vs. lingually oriented in all other alestids, and the possession of a distinctively shaped margin of the supraoccipital with a steep anterodorsal convexity at the junction of the parietals followed by a dorsomedial concavity on the surface of the supraoccipital (Ref. 127953).
Body shape (shape guide): fusiform / normal.
Occurs in sandy river courses and floodplain lakes with bushy shorelines with forested or grassy margins (Ref. 127953).
Life cycle and mating behavior
Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae
Melo, B.F. and M.L.J. Stiassny, 2022. Systematic review and cranial osteology of Petersius with redescription of P. conserialis (Teleostei: Alestidae) from the Rufiji and Ruvu rivers of Tanzania. Am. Mus. Nov. 3992:1-16. (Ref. 127953)
IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435: Version 2025-1)
Threat to humans
Harmless
Human uses
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Estimates based on models
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref.
82804): PD
50 = 1.0000 [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.01072 (0.00484 - 0.02371), b=3.02 (2.84 - 3.20), in cm total length, based on LWR estimates for this (Sub)family-body shape (Ref.
93245).
Trophic level (Ref.
69278): 3.1 ±0.4 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).
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