Species: Nandopsis haitiensis, Haiti Cichlid, Haitian Cichlid

Nandopsis haitiensis (Tee-Van, 1935)

Haiti Cichlid, Haitian Cichlid

Body oblong; head long, upper profile oblique, snout bluntly pointed; 1 pair of nostrils; large males with a hump on nape; mouth large, wide, protractile, top jaw reaches to just before front of eye; lower jaw projecting; few teeth on jaws, outer row conical, canines at front of top (1 pair) and lower (2-3 pairs) jaws; 8-10 gill rakers; dorsal fin XIV (XIII-XV), 11-12, no notch between spines and rays, soft fin higher than spiny part; anal fin IV, 8-10; pectoral short, not reaching to level of anus; anal fin with IV or more spines; tail fin rounded to bluntly straight; scales large, rough, 30-33 in lateral series, 7 between lateral line and dorsal fin origin; bases of soft dorsal, anal and tail fins scaled; lateral line in 2 straight overlapping sections, 18-20 + 9-11 pores.

Grey-brown to blackish brown; pale body patterned with black spots in scale centers and black scale edges; commonly with 3 or more blotches along mid-side connected by a dark stripe - one on base of tail fin, one at mid-side, one at upper edge of operculum; fins colored as body; juvenile occasionally with dark vertical bars.

Reaches 15 cm.

Lives in freshwater, occasionally in brackish water.

Depth range: 0-3 m?

Hispaniola.