THE NOTHOBRANCHIUS SITE

MRAC 192399, holotype, male, 28.9 mm SL; DR Congo: Katanga province: upper Lufira drainage: Dilungu swamp, 10°45' S, 27°15' E; collected by M. Dricot, Feb 1940.

MRAC 192400-05 (6), 192384-87 (4), 192257-67 (11), 192274-82 (9)

Nothobranchius polli males are characterized by an iridescent light blue body with red scale margins, forming a distinct reticulation. The snout, throat and dorsal part of the head are red. The dorsal fin is pale blue with dark red stripes and a distinct narrow light blue to white distal band. The anal fin is pale blue, with narrow red proximal and submedial bands, and median and distal portions that are yellow with some red dots and irregular narrow red stripes. The caudal fin is pale blue with a marbled pattern of red dots and stripes proximally, a narrow red-brown medial band, a slender light blue subdistal band and a narrow black distal band.

Subgenus: Zononothobranchius

Species group: N. brieni group

Populations of this species originating from the upper Lufira system were first identified as N. brieni, which species was the first and, for 40 years, the only Nothobranchius species described from the Congo and upper Zambezi river drainages, and the populations were also referred to as N. aff. taeniopygus, based on the presence of broad light subdistal band in the caudal fin. Finally, Nothobranchius polli was established as a distinct species by Wildekamp in 1978, and that status has since been accepted by all authors.

DR Congo: Katanga province: upper Lufira drainage: Dilungu swamp, 10°45' S, 27°15' E.

This species is endemic to seasonal freshwater habitats in south-eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is known from temporary pools and swamps in the upper Lufira drainage, Katanga province, Democratic Republic of Congo.

Upper Lualaba (545)

1059–1069 m

Personal observation at collecting sites (5 locations):

Water temperature: 22.5–27.5 °C

pH: 6.32–7.18

TDS:  101–193 ppm

Conductivity: 202–386 µS

None

This species has an annual life cycle.

Embryonic development under captive conditions in peat moss is about three to four months at room temperature.

Maximum size reported: 35.1 mm SL (MRAC B4-019-P-0016-8, 3 males)

Diploid chromosome number 2n = 36, NF = 60, karyotype structure 10m+14sm+12st/a (Krysanov & Demidova, 2018).

​Karyotype structure unique in the genus.

The specific name is given in honor of Prof. Max Poll, Belgian ichthyologist.

Endangered B1ab(iii)+2ab(iii) (Nagy & Watters, 2019);

Previous assessment: Endangered B1ab(iii)+2ab(iii) (Moelants, 2010)

    Wildekamp, R. H. 1978. Redescription of Nothobranchius brieni Poll, 1938 and the description of three new Nothobranchius species (Pisces, Cyprinodontidae) from the province of Shaba, Zaire. Revue de Zoologie Africaine, 92 (2): 341–354. [taxonomy as Nothobranchius polli]

    Nagy, B. 2014. A la redécouverte du légendaire Nothobranchius brieni. AKFB. Killi-Contact, 42 (1): 2–15. [collecting]

    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. [systematics, morphology]

    Nagy, B. 2015. More on the search for Nothobranchius brieni. Journal of the American Killifish Association, 48 (1-2): 1–24. [collecting]

    Nagy, B., F. P. D. Cotterill & D. U. Bellstedt. 2016. Nothobranchius sainthousei, a new species of annual killifish from the Luapula River drainage in northern Zambia (Teleostei: Cyprinodontiformes). Ichthyological Exploration of Freshwaters, 27 (3): 233–254. [phylogeny]

    Nagy, B. 2017. Collecting Killies in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Tropical Fish Hobbyist, #724, May/June 2017, 65 (5): 46–52. [collecting]

    Nagy, B. & B. R. Watters. 2019. Nothobranchius polli. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2019: e.T181798A58327427. [conservation]

    Nagy, B. & B. R. Watters. 2020. Threatened - the world is a dangerous place for seasonal fishes. Journal of the American Killifish Association, 53 (4): 141–156. [conservation]

    Nagy, B. & B. R. Watters, 2021. A review of the conservation status of seasonal Nothobranchius fishes (Teleostei: Cyprinodontiformes), a genus with a high level of threat, inhabiting ephemeral wetland habitats in Africa. Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems, 1–18. [conservation]