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Species: Poecilia caymanensis, Grand Cayman Limia, Grand Cayman Molly

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narrow dark bars
D & C: irregular rows of irregular spots, yellow in
Grand Cayman
male: pelvic tips swollen, sex organ - with fleshy palp, no spines

Poecilia caymanensis (Rivas & Fink, 1970)

Grand Cayman Limia, Grand Cayman Molly

Head and body moderately robust, moderately compressed at rear; head depressed;front nostril not tubular; covering of eye not continuous with skin of head; preoperculum with 7 pores, that do not form an open canal; mouth small, at front, slightly oblique, lower jaw slightly projecting, top jaw protractile; outer teeth strongly compressed, spatula-like; inner teeth 3-pointed; 1 dorsal fin with short base, at rear of body; anal fin origin distinctly before dorsal fin origin; pelvic origin well behind pectoral base, near anal fin; tip of pelvic fin of males swollen, elongate, tip of 2nd ray fleshy, cuved inward, tip of 3rd ray branched; pectorals high on flank 5th ray not scalloped in male; 3rd anal ray unbranched; anal fin modified in male to form an elongate sex organ, tip of that organ straight, without spines, with a fleshy palp; tail base relatively narrow; tail fin rounded; scales smooth and relatively large.

Yellowish brown; upper body with inconspicuous narrow dark bars; dorsal and tail fins with irregular rows of irregular shaped black spots, base color of those fins yellowish in male.

Reaches 4.0 cm.

In fresh to brackish water, including mangroves.

Depth range: 0-1 m.

Endemic to Grand Cayman Island.


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Salinity
  • Brackish
  • Freshwater
  • Non Marine
Inshore/Offshore
  • Inshore
  • Inshore Only
Water Column Position
  • Bottom
Habitat
  • Soft bottom (mud/sand/gravel/beach/estuary/mangrove/seagrass)
  • Estuary
  • Freshwater
  • Mangrove
FishBase Habitat
  • Demersal
Feeding Group
  • Carnivore
  • Data
  • Detritivore
Diet
  • Data
  • Detritus
  • Insects
  • Mobile benthic crustacea (shrimps/crabs)
  • Mobile benthic worms
Egg Type
  • Data
  • Live birth
  • No pelagic larva
  • No pelagic phase
Global Endemism
  • All species
  • Greater Caribbean endemic
  • West Atlantic Endemic
Regional Endemism
  • Antilles endemic
  • GC endemic
  • Island (s)
  • Island (s) only
  • All species
Residency
  • Resident
Climate Zone
  • Tropical (10-23N, Nicaragua / Cuba)
IUCN Red List
  • Not evaluated / Listed
CITES
  • Not listed
Length Max
  • 4
Depth Range Min
  • 0
Depth Range Max
  • 1