A. sp. Tiger-stripe

[Mike & Diane Wise <apistowise@bewellnet.com>]

A week or so ago I gave my opinion about A. sp.
Tiger stripe. My opinion was that it is the same
species as A. sp. Masken. After discussing this
with Julio Melgar & Ingo Koslowski it appears that
my ID is wrong. A. sp. Tiger-stripe is not A. sp.
Masken.

Koslowski wrote me the following: "Gary´s
Tigerstripe is most likely a form of the
Winkelfleck. I am not sure, because I never saw
this alive. It shows the body- and fin shape, the
metallic sheen and the typical aggressive pattern
of this species. The main difference is that it
has a less striped caudal fin and more red on the
gill covers. It is definitely not a Masken, which
is less compact with a slightly more pointed head,
has no metallic body and slightly different gill
cover markings (difficult to describe). It
normally has a higher dorsal fin, more prominent
abdominal stripes a more slender caudal spot and
more regularly striped caudal fin. It is also more
vertically depressed. Nonetheless both species are
similar and it may be difficult to tell them apart
if one hasn't had them alive."

The caudal fin pattern is sufficiently different
from that of A. sp. Winkelfleck (but like that
seen on A. sp. Masken) that for now I will put it
on my list as a separate species.

Randy Cary sent me a photo of A. sp. Carapintada.
Well, Randy, they might not be Masken after all.
They might be Tiger-stripe. Gary, do you know
anyone who is still keeping offspring from your
original Tiger-stripes? Contact me off list.

Oh, BTW, does anyone have a good recipe for crow?
I'm sure that I'll be eating crow over this fiasco
for a while - { :-(

Mike Wise



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