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I have problems to identify this Synodontis from the Cunene River (Namibia). The closest one is S. thamalakanensis, but his distribution is more eastwards in the Kavango/Okavango and Zambezi systems, and not in the Cunene. But maybe it was just not recorded from there before?



Any other ideas?

Erwin

I think it looks more like S. vanderwaali, which is known from the Cunene.

That is ONE beautiful Synodontis....
look at that skinpattern!
Is it a smoooth skinned Syno or a granulose one?

H. H. How did you determine this fish is S,vanderwaali and not S,woosnami ?
Looking at the picture I can not see enough to make a positive either way. What do you see I
don't ? Just curious...

S. woosnami has shorter caudal-fin lobes than the fish in the picture and would not have the spots coalesced into a network-like pattern sometimes seen in S. vanderwaali.

Hello,

S. thamalakanensis show lots of papillas at the outer edge of the basis of the maxillary barbel wether S vanderwaali don't. A close up picture would be useful

The humeral process of S. woosmani is broader than of S. vanderwaali (which I do not see correctly on the picture too!). S woosmani is deeper bodied than S. vanderwaali

Hope this helps

Charly

My main source for Syno IDs is Max Poll's book from 1971. Vanderwaali isn't listed. I'd love to have newer sources for Syno IDs, can anyone name some?

Skelton, P.H. & P.N. White, 1990. Two new species of Synodontis (Pisces: Siluroidei: Mochokidae) from southern Africa. Ichthyol. Explor. Freshwaters, 1: 277-287.

Synodontis vanderwaali and S. macrostoma described here.

Or get Paul Skelton's book on the freshwater fishes of southern Africa. It summarizes everything.

Looking at the picture again ,I would think that the length of the dorsal spine(not real clear)
would be the main indicator for S. vanderwaali .

I use Paul Skelton's book "A Complete Guide to the Freshwater Fishes of Southern Africa" to identify fish from that area. It does not contain photographs, but all species are displayed in excellent colour drawings.

I don't think that the Cunene-Synodontis is S. vanderwaali, because the fish on my photograph owns black barbels in the upper jaw, and only S. thamalakanensis gots this feature. A closeup of the humeral process also shows the angular part above it, while it is in rounded in S. vanderwaali. According to the drawing in Skelton, owns this species also a light brown ground coloration and little oval shaped dots.

See here the closeup of the humeral process of the Cunene fish:



On the next picture I can show you an import fish from Zambia of which I believe that it is S. vanderwaali. At least it owns all the features this species should have. It is younger (about 6 cm SL) but still it looks completely different to the Cunene fish.



And for comparison another fish from a Zambia import, of which I believe that it might be S. macrostoma.



What do you think?

Erwin

The original description of S. vanderwaali states that "The colour patterns of these three species [S. leopardinus, S. thamalakanensis and S. vanderwaali...my note] overlap considerably..."
Furthermore, it is stated that "Cunene River specimens [of S. vanderwaali...again my note] have more slender, elongated and closer vermiculations."
As for the humeral process, there is really little difference between adult speimens of S. thamalakanensis (the different shape observed in the juvenile S. vanderwaali is growth-related). The leading edge of the maxillary barbels also appear smooth (without papillae), a characteristic of S. vanderwaali.

Did the big black Syno make it alive to Europe? or did it end up in a jar of formaline?

A fish like that would make a stunning display in any large showtank.....

Nothing of both sidguppy, it was given to local people "assisting" the catch. They were happy, what means, the fish is probably tasty. It was to big to take it with us But two small specimens of two different species from the Kavango (surely S. macrostigma and probably S. woosnami) are living now in one of my fishtanks. But these were the only Synos which we were able to catch.

Erwin