Teleostei (teleosts) >
Osteoglossiformes (Bony tongues) >
Mormyridae (Elephantfishes)
Etymology: Petrocephalus: Latin, petra = stone + Greek, kephale = head (Ref. 45335); okavangensis: The species name refers to the Okavango River (Ref. 91771).
Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range
Ecology
Freshwater; demersal. Tropical
Africa: Okavango River drainage system, from the headwaters in Angola in the north, to the Makgadikgadi Salt Pan region in Botswana in the south (Ref. 79613, 91771). Also reported from the Zambezi in Angola (Ref. 120641).
Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm ?  range ? - ? cm
Max length : 9.5 cm SL male/unsexed; (Ref. 91771)
Short description
Identification keys | Morphology | Morphometrics
Dorsal spines (total): 0; Dorsal soft rays (total): 20 - 24; Anal spines: 0; Anal soft rays: 27 - 32. Diagnosis: Body depth 26.1-34.8% of standard length; head length 23.2-27.4% of standard length; preanal length 53.8-61.9% of standard length; dorsal fin length 14.5-19.5% of standard length; length of anal fin 24.7-28.6% of standard length; depth of caudal peduncle 26.4-34.9% of its length; number of anal fin rays 27-32; number of scales in lateral line row 37-38; number of scales around caudal peduncle 12 (Ref. 91771).
Hardy and eurytopic species, common in both swamp and river (Ref. 79613). Collected under papyrus root stocks in the Guma Lagoon (Ref. 91771).
Life cycle and mating behavior
Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae
Kramer, B., R. Bills, P. Skelton and M. Wink, 2012. A critical revision of the churchill snoutfish, genus Petrocephalus Marcusen, 1854 (Actinopterygii: Teleostei: Mormyridae), from southern and eastern Africa, with the recognition of Petrocephalus tanensis, and the description of five new species. Journal of Natural History 46(35-36):2179-2258. (Ref. 91771)
IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435: Version 2024-1)
Threat to humans
Harmless
Human uses
Tools
Special reports
Download XML
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=0.01549 (0.00684 - 0.03506), b=2.86 (2.68 - 3.04), in cm total length, based on LWR estimates for this Genus-body shape (Ref.
93245).
Trophic level (Ref.
69278): 3.2 ±0.4 se; based on size and trophs of closest relatives
Fishing Vulnerability (Ref.
59153): Low vulnerability (10 of 100).