Question about Labeo cylindricus

[sidguppy]

I find all kinds of conflicting data on this fish;
most of it about its' origin.

I have 4, presumably caught in Lake Tanganyika.
now here's the rub: according to some specieslist it IS native (not endemic) to Tanganyika, but according to others it is not.
some synonyme it with Varicorhinus spp (V cylindricus??), but that species is also on and off specieslists for The Lake.

funny thing is, my foursome (2 males and 2 females at the moment still residing in one of Dhonti's tanks) were brought in at a befriended breeder/LFS as "Tanganyikan barbs", I've seen it -rarely- on importlists from the Rift and I know for ceratain it IS also native to Lake Malawi.

it is also found in many rivers and drainages throughout the Congo and the Zambesi.

illustrating the mess:
according to Keith L Jackson's IWR-list it IS a native, he got his list of valid genera and species checked referring to "A Catalog of the Species of Fishes - William N. Eschmeyer, Carl J. Ferraris, Jr., Mysi Dang Hoang, and Douglas J. Long - 1996"

according to Fishbase.org it is not; doesn't show on that list.

but the French in their huge database on Tanganyika -they have a truly stunning site at destin-Tanganyika/Tanganyika Netliberte/Tanganyikan cichlid etc; all made by or at least directed by Eric Genevelle (not exactly a nobody on this subject) again this IS a valid fishspecies for Tanganyika, showing up in the basin, lake and affluents......

an underwaterpic taken from Lake Malawi:


anyone with access to scientific records care to help me straighthening out this mess?

[Mike_Noren]

I'm not sure I understand the problem... Both Fishbase and Eschmeyer Catalog of Fishes list Labeo (Varicorhinus) cylindricus as a valid species. As far as I can tell it has no synonyms (Varicorhinus is used as a subgenus).
Distribution is said to be basically the entire central and southern africa.
Such a distribution is, however, suspicious, and I would expect "Labeo cylindricus" is really a species complex comprising a number of similar species.

[Shane]

Skelton (FW Fishes of Southern Africa 2nd Ed) offers the following:

Attains 230mm and .9 kg. Widespread from East African rivers south through the Zambezi system and east coastal drainages to the Phongolo system in northern KwaZulu-Natal. Also reported from the Zambian Congo and Lualaba (Congo basin).

Favors clear running waters in rocky habitats of small and large rivers, also found in lakes and dams over rocks...shoals, grazes algae...migrates upstream in masses to breed... useful algal eater in aquariums. One report suggests that this sp "cleans" exposed fungal infections in other fishes.

It is common in the Incomati basin near Pretoria. I can send a pic when I catch one.
-Shane