Teleostei (teleosts) >
Osteoglossiformes (Bony tongues) >
Mormyridae (Elephantfishes)
Etymology: Petrocephalus: Latin, petra = stone + Greek, kephale = head (Ref. 45335); sauvagii: Named in honour of Dr. H.E. Sauvage (Ref. 42539).
More on author: Boulenger.
Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range
Ecology
Freshwater; demersal. Tropical
Africa: Congo River basin and Niger Delta (Ref. 2915, 85331). Possibly present in the coastal Nigerian fringe (Ref. 2915). Reports from coastal basins of Cameroon (Ref. 51193) or the Chiloango (Ref. 88943) questionable as the species is reported to be absent from the Lower Guinea Ichthyological Province (Ref. 85331).
Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm ? range ? - ? cm
Max length : 17.5 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 42539)
Dorsal spines (total): 0; Dorsal soft rays (total): 26 - 28; Anal spines: 0; Anal soft rays: 34 - 36. Petrocephalus sauvagii is distinguished from all other Petrocephalus species in Central Africa by the following combination of characteristics: very wide mouth (mouthwidth 2,7 to 3,7 in head length) associated with a characteristic head shape when viewed from above, anal fin with at least 32 branched rays, dorsal fin with at least 25 branched rays, mouth subterminal, ration between the head length and the mouth position as large as 7,4 (Ref. 85331). It has 17-30 teeth in upper jaw, and 29-35 teeth in lower jaw (Ref. 2915, 85331). Pigmentation pattern with two melanin markings, sometimes of weak intensity or even scarcely visible: (1) an irregularly round black mark below the anterior base (first to fourth rays) of the dorsal fin; and (2) an ovoid blackish mark, often irregularly shaped, at the base of the caudal fin, extending onto the upper and lower fleshy lobes of the fin (Ref. 85331).
Affinities: Same color as P. soudanensis, but distinguished by mouth position, number of teeth and eye size; same morphology as P. bane and P. ansorgii (Ref. 2915).
Life cycle and mating behavior
Maturities | Reproduction | Spawnings | Egg(s) | Fecundities | Larvae
Lévêque, C.D. Paugy and G.G. Teugels (eds.), 1990. Faune des poissons d'eaux douces et saumâtres d'Afrique de l'Ouest. Tome 1. Coll. Faune Tropicale N° 28. Musée Royal de l'Afrique Centrale, Tervuren, Belgique et O.R.S.T.O.M., Paris, France. 384 p. (Ref. 2703)
IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435)
Threat to humans
Harmless
Human uses
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Internet sources
Estimates based on models
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref.
82804): PD
50 = 0.5000 [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.01585 (0.00697 - 0.03603), b=2.85 (2.67 - 3.03), in cm total length, based on LWR estimates for this Genus-body shape (Ref.
93245).
Trophic level (Ref.
69278): 3.3 ±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).
