Mikrogeophagus ramirezi (Myers & Harry, 1948)
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
The ram cichlid (Mikrogeophagus ramirezi) is a species of freshwater fish endemic to the Orinoco River basin, in the savannahs of Venezuela and Colombia in South America. The species has been examined in studies on fish behaviour and is a popular aquarium fish, traded under a variety of common names, including ram, blue ram, German blue ram, Asian ram, butterfly cichlid, Ramirez's dwarf cichlid, dwarf butterfly cichlid and Ramirezi. The species is a member of the family Cichlidae and subfamily Geophaginae.
Wikipedia contributors, Ram cichlid; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T23:12:58.319071+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Mikrogeophagus ramirezi (Myers & Harry, 1948)
- Name authority
- (Myers & Harry, 1948)
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Teleostei
- Order
- Cichliformes
- Family
- Cichlidae
- Genus
- Mikrogeophagus
- Extinction status
- Not supplied by this source
Source habitat flags: Marine: no · Freshwater: yes · Terrestrial: no. These do not form a complete habitat description.
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- gigaclassActinopterygii
- superclassActinopteri
- classTeleostei
- orderCichliformes
- familyCichlidae Bonaparte, 1835
- subfamilyCichlinae Bonaparte, 1835
- genusMikrogeophagus Meulengracht-Madsen, 1968
- speciesMikrogeophagus ramirezi (Myers & Harry, 1948)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Mikrogeophagus. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Mikrogeophagus altispinosus (Haseman, 1911) | CichlidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Papiliochromis ramirezi (Myers & Harry, 1948) (Myers & Harry, 1948) | synonym |
| Apistogramma ramirezi Myers & Harry, 1948 Myers & Harry, 1948 | synonym |
| Microgeophagus ramirezi (Myers & Harry, 1948) (Myers & Harry, 1948) | synonym |
| Papilochromis ramirezi (Myers & Harry, 1948) (Myers & Harry, 1948) | synonym |
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=1014331 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:43BTQ. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.