Nothobranchius typically inhabit ephemeral pools that are filled only during the monsoon season, and show extreme life-history adaptations to survive the dry season. When their habitats dry up, the adult fish die and the eggs survive encased in the clay during the dry season. The embryos survive the dry season by entering diapause, facilitated by their specialized eggs that have a very hard chorion and are resistant to desiccation and hypoxia.[3] These species reach maturity very quickly once diapause is broken and have a very short life span; one species, Nothobranchius furzeri, reaches maturity in 17 days and seldom lives beyond 6 months.[3]
From Greek νοθοσ / nothos: false, spurious, and βράγχια / bránchia: gill.[4]
There are currently 96 recognized species in this genus:[1]
Valdesalici, S. (2014): Nothobranchius bellemansi and Nothobranchius occultus (Cyprinodontiformes: Nothobranchiidae) two new annual killifish from Sudan. Killi-Data Series, 2014: 4-19.
Watters, B.R., Wildekamp, R.H. & Shidlovskiy, K.M. (2015): Description and biogeography of Nothobranchius capriviensis, a new species of annual killifish from the Zambezi Region of Namibia (Cyprinodontiformes: Nothobranchiidae). Journal of the American Killifish Association, 47 (4-6): 97-133.
Nagy, B. (2014): Nothobranchius chochamandai, a new species of annual killifish from the Luapula drainage, Democratic Republic of Congo (Cyprinodontiformes: Nothobranchiidae). Ichthyological Exploration of Freshwaters, 25 (2): 167-183.
Nagy, B. (2018). "Nothobranchius ditte, a new species of annual killifish from the Lake Mweru basin in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (Teleostei: Nothobranchiidae)". Ichthyological Exploration of Freshwaters. 28 (2): 115–134.
Nagy, B. (2014): Nothobranchius flagrans, a new species of annual killifish from the Lufira drainage, Democratic Republic of Congo (Cyprinodontiformes: Nothobranchiidae). Ichthyological Exploration of Freshwaters, 25 (3): 259-276.
Nagy, B. (2014): Nothobranchius milvertzi, a new species of killifish from the Lushiba Marsh in the Lake Mweru drainage, Zambia (Teleostei: Cyprinodontiformes: Nothobranchiidae). Ichthyological Exploration of Freshwaters, 24 (4): 347-360.
Valdesalici, S., Bills, R., Dorn, A., Reichwald, K. & Cellerino, A. (2012): Nothobranchius niassa (Cyprinodontiformes: Nothobranchiidae), a new species of annual killifish from northern Mozambique. Ichthyological Exploration of Freshwaters, 23 (1): 19-28.
Wildekamp, R.H., Watters, B.R. & Shidlovskiy, K.M. (2014): Review of the Nothobranchius neumanni species group with descriptions of three new species from Tanzania (Cyprinodontiformes: Nothobranchiidae). Journal of the American Killifish Association, 47 (1): 2-30.
Valdesalici, S. (2015): Nothobranchius torgashevi (Cyprinodontiformes: Nothobranchiidae) a new species of annual killifish with two male colour morphs from the Lake Eyasi Basin, Central Tanzania. Killi-Data Series, 2015: 17-30.
Ng'oma, E., Valdesalici, S., Reichwald, K. & Cellerino, A. (2013): Genetic and morphological studies of Nothobranchius (Cyprinodontiformes) from Malawi with description of Nothobranchius wattersi sp. nov. Journal of Fish Biology, 82 (1): 165–188.
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