Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes) > Characiformes
(Characins) > Distichodontidae
Etymology: Neolebias: Greek, neos = new + Greek, lebias, ou = a kind of small fish (Ref. 45335). More on author: Boulenger.
Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range
Freshwater; pelagic; pH range: 5.0 - 6.0; dH range: 5 - 12; potamodromous (Ref. 51243). Tropical; 24°C - 28°C (Ref. 1672)
Africa: known from the Niger delta to the lower portions of the Congo River (Ref. 81638). Also found in Benin and in the Ogun River in Nigeria (Ref. 2936, 86396). Present in Cameroon, Gabon, Republic of Congo, Cabinda (Ref. 81638) and Democratic Republic of the Congo (Ref. 94734).
Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm ?  range ? - ? cm
Max length : 2.6 cm SL male/unsexed; (Ref. 7094)
Morphology | Morphometrics
soft rays: 9 - 12. Diagnosis: body depth 3.1-3.8x and head length 3.1-3.8x SL; snout length comprised from 4.5-4.7x in head length; eye diameter comprised from 3-3.5x in head length (Ref. 86396). Laterosensory canal on lateral surface of head limited to arch of pores around ventral and posterior margins of orbit and associated with preopercle; maxilla with 6 or more teeth; 6th infraorbital (dermosphenotic) absent; dark pigmentation along lateral surface of body approximately 4 scales high (Ref. 81638). Dark vertical bar at base of caudal fin (Ref. 81638, 86396). 11-13 (Ref. 81638) or 10-12 (Ref. 86396) total dorsal fin rays.
Feeds on worms, crustaceans and insects (Ref. 7020).
Life cycle and mating behavior
Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae
Daget, J. and J.-P. Gosse, 1984. Distichodontidae. p. 184-211. In J. Daget, J.-P. Gosse and D.F.E. Thys van den Audenaerde (eds.) Check-list of the freshwater fishes of Africa (CLOFFA). ORSTOM, Paris and MRAC, Tervuren. Vol. 1. (Ref. 7094)
IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 120744)
CITES (Ref. 118484)
Threat to humans
Fisheries: ; aquarium: commercial
ReferencesAquacultureAquaculture profileStrainsGeneticsAllele frequenciesHeritabilityDiseasesProcessingMass conversion
Estimates based on models
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref. 82805
= 0.5002 [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.01259 (0.00551 - 0.02875), b=3.01 (2.81 - 3.21), in cm Total Length, based on LWR estimates for this (Sub)family-body shape (Ref. 93245
Trophic Level (Ref. 69278
): 3.3 ±0.39 se; Based on food items.
Resilience (Ref. 120179
): High, minimum population doubling time less than 15 months (Preliminary K or Fecundity.).
Vulnerability (Ref. 59153
): Low vulnerability (10 of 100) .