Genus · Killifish

Fundulopanchax

Fundulopanchax is a genus with 22 species in this atlas, catalogued in the Killifish section, recorded from Cameroon, Nigeria, Equatorial Guinea and 5 more countries. Adult sizes run from 2 in to 5 in. Every species below links to a full researched profile.

Species in atlas
22
Adult sizes
2–5 in
IUCN assessed
22 of 22 · 7 threatened
Recorded from
8 countries

About the genus

Fundulopanchax is a genus of killifish in the family Nothobranchiidae, native to rainforest and savanna streams and pools of West and Central Africa — the atlas's records span Cameroon, Nigeria, Equatorial Guinea, Ghana, Benin, Cote d'Ivoire, and Togo. Like other African killifish, species are small, strikingly patterned, and strongly sexually dimorphic, with males carrying bold red, blue, or iridescent spotting and patterning that females lack. The atlas covers 22 species from about 2–5 in as adults; some occupy permanent water bodies while others live in seasonal pools that dry up between rains, a distinction that shapes how each species reproduces.

Fundulopanchax includes some of the most popular killifish in the aquarium hobby — Fundulopanchax gardneri, the Blue lyretail, is widely considered one of the best beginner killifish for its color, hardiness, and manageable size, while the Blue gularis, a common name shared by both Fundulopanchax gularis and Fundulopanchax sjostedti in the atlas, is a larger, more striking species for more experienced keepers. Species from seasonal pools are typically egg-layers whose eggs can withstand a dry incubation period between wet seasons, a trait killifish breeders deliberately reproduce at home. Conservation status across the genus is uneven: West African forest-stream habitat loss has left a substantial share of species Endangered, Data Deficient, or worse, and the atlas flags two species for CARES conservation priority.

IUCN Red List: Critically Endangered · 1 Endangered · 6 Near Threatened · 1 Least Concern · 6 Data Deficient · 6 Not Evaluated · 2CARES 2 on the priority list

The 22 species

Every Fundulopanchax recorded in this atlas. Each card links to a full researched profile — distribution, water parameters, and aquarium care, cited to primary sources. 1 has hobbyist breeding reports (◉).

(Radda, 1976)

Amiet's killifish, Amiet's lyretail

Somakak · 3 in SL · NE CARES

Malumbres & Castelo, 2001

Nguba II, Bata · 2.5 in SL · DD

(Clausen, 1963)

Cinnamon killifish

3 in TL · EN

(Rhymer, 1989)

Delta killi

3 in SL · NT

(Berkenkamp, 1978)

Kribi killi

3.5 in TL · EN

(Meinken, 1933)

Plumed lyretail, Thread-finned killifish

2 in TL · LC

(Boulenger, 1911)

Blue lyretail, Steel-blue killifish, Gardner's killifish

2 in SL · LC

Berkenkamp, 2003

Takwai · 2 in SL · DD

(Boulenger, 1901)

Blue gularis, Blue lyretail

3 in SL · NE

Akum, Sonnenberg, Van der Zee & Wildekamp, 2007

3 in SL · LC

(Radda, 1971)

Marbled Lyretail, Marbled killifish

2.5 in TL · EN

(Radda, 1970)

Miraculous killifish

3 in SL · DD

(Ahl, 1924)

2.5 in TL · DD

(Wickler, 1963)

2.5 in SL · LC

(Schmidt, 1928)

Oeser's killifish

3 in TL · EN

(Radda & Scheel, 1974)

3 in TL · LC

(Radda & Scheel, 1974)

Robertson's killifish

Yoke 89/14 · 2.5 in SL · DD

Etzel & Sonnenberg, 2008

2.5 in SL · EN

(Radda, 1970)

Scheel's killifish, Emerald killifish

2.5 in TL · CR

(Lönnberg, 1895)

Blue gularis, Golden pheasant killi

5 in SL · EN CARES

(Berkenkamp, 1976)

Owom, Nigeria · 3 in TL · DD

(Boulenger, 1911)

Walker's killifish, Walker's killi

2.5 in SL · LC

Explore further

How to cite

Aquarist Atlas (2026). Genus Fundulopanchax. Aquarist Atlas. https://www.aquaristatlas.com/fundulopanchax/

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