Anomalochromis thomasi (Boulenger, 1915)

Open encyclopedia reference

Anomalochromis is a genus of fish in the family Cichlidae, containing the single species Anomalochromis thomasi, the African butterfly cichlid. It is a small cichlid growing to a length of 6–8 cm (2.4–3.1 in). The natural habitat of A. thomasi is Sierra Leone, Liberia, and Guinea, mainly in smaller streams. The fish are typically found in slightly acidic, oxygen-rich water with other West African cichlid genera such as Hemichromis and Pelvicachromis. This species is found in forest streams, shaded by dense overhanging vegetation where the water is heavily stained with tannins from decaying organic matter. In these streams, the temperature of the water can approach 30 °C (86 °F) in the dry season. It can also occur in streams in forest edge habitats. Under stress or when disturbed, A. thomasi can bury itself in the mud, occasionally down to 30 cm (12 in). They form pairs which spawn into the substrate. These pairs are territorial; the female selects a laying site on a leaf or flat rock that the male and she clean.

Wikipedia contributors, Anomalochromis; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T19:01:21.806728+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.

Identity & source status

Scientific name

Anomalochromis thomasi (Boulenger, 1915)

Name authority

(Boulenger, 1915)

Rank

species

Accepted status

accepted

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Chordata

Class

Teleostei

Order

Cichliformes

Family

Cichlidae

Genus

Anomalochromis

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.

1. domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
2. kingdomAnimalia
3. phylumChordata
4. subphylumVertebrata
5. infraphylumGnathostomata
6. parvphylumOsteichthyes
7. gigaclassActinopterygii
8. superclassActinopteri
9. classTeleostei
10. orderCichliformes
11. familyCichlidae Bonaparte, 1835
12. subfamilyPseudocrenilabrinae Fowler, 1934
13. genusAnomalochromis Greenwood, 1985
14. speciesAnomalochromis thomasi (Boulenger, 1915)

Close classified relatives

No other member of this genus is present in the selected snapshot.

Browse 1,355 records assigned to Cichlidae.

Names & synonyms

Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.

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.

1. https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=1017217 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:5V74V. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.