INTEROCHROMIS, A NEW GENUS OF THE TANGANYIKAN CICHLID FISH

A new genus. Interochromis, is erected on the basis of morphological a nd ecological reviews on a cichlid species, Limnotilapia loocki, endem ic to Lake Tanganyika. This species is an epilithic algal grazer not b rowser feeding mainly on unicellular algae, as in Petrochromis, and al so a maternal mouthbrooder incubating larger eggs as in Petrochromis. Its intestinal coiling pattern is of the Petrochromis type and more co mplicated than that of the browsers. Osteologically, the shapes of the neurocranium, maxilla and suspensorial complex are similar to those o f Petrochromis. its jaw dentition is intermediate between that of graz ers and browsers. The outer jaw teeth, except lateral ones, have the b icuspid crown bent linguad well with the slender stalk and are clearly larger than inner teeth, which have the tricuspid crown. L. loocki di ffers from a congener, L. dardennii. it resembles the grazers, Petroch romis spp., rather than the browsers, Simochromis spp., Pseudosimochro mis curvifrons and Tropheus moorii. Though it has been proposed to syn onymise the genus Limnotilapia with the genus Simochromis, it seems re asonable that L. loocki should be placed in a distinct new genus.