A new species of inseminating seasonal killifish of the Cynopoecilus melanotaenia complex from southern Brazil (Cyprinodontiformes: Rivulidae).
BACKGROUND
The Cynopoecilus melanotaenia complex is a morphologically homogeneous killifish group, endemic from an area encompassing southern Brazil and northeastern Uruguay. It presently comprises four valid species: C. melanotaenia, the type species of the genus, and C. fulgens, C. intimus, and C. nigrovittatus.


CONCLUSIONS
Cynopoecilus feltrini, n. sp., from the lower Tubarão river basin, southern Brazil, is distinguished from all congeners of the C. melanotaenia complex by having frontal E-scales medially overlapped, branchiostegal region orangish red in males and dorsum with few dark brown spots above opercular region. A phylogenetic tree derived from the analysis of a fragment of the mitochondrial gene cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (681 bp) indicates that C. feltrini is a member of the clade that includes all species of the C. melanotaenia complex except C. melanotaenia, as well as that C. feltrini is the sister group of a clade comprising C. fulgens and C. nigrovittatus.
UFRJ - Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Wison Jem
WJ
Costa
UFRJ - Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Pedro F
PF
Amorim
UFRJ - Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
José Leonardo Oliveira
JL
Mattos
Aplocheiloid killifishes; Internal fertilization; Molecular phylogeny; Neotropical region; Systematics