''Parachromis'' is a genus of

cichlids Cichlids () are a large, diverse, and widespread family of Percomorpha, percomorph fish in the family (biology), family Cichlidae, order Cichliformes. At least 1,760 species have been Binomial nomenclature, scientifically described, making ...

native to

Central America Central America is a subregion of North America. Its political boundaries are defined as bordering Mexico to the north, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest. Central America is usually ...

. Some species occur in

Lake Nicaragua Lake Nicaragua or Cocibolca or Granada (, , or ) is a freshwater lake in Nicaragua. Of tectonic origin and with an area of , it is the largest fresh water lake in Central America, the List of lakes by area, 19th largest lake in the world (by are ...

and

Lake Managua Lake Managua (, ), also known as Lake Xolotlán (), is a freshwater lake in Nicaragua. At 1,042 km², it is approximately long and wide. Similarly to the name of Lake Nicaragua, its other name comes from the Nahuatl language, possibly from ...

. All species are predatory and relatively large for cichlids.

Species

There are currently five recognized species in this genus: * '' Parachromis dovii'' ( Günther, 1864) (Wolf cichlid, Guapote) * '' Parachromis friedrichsthalii'' ( Heckel, 1840) (Yellowjacket cichlid) * ''

Parachromis loisellei ''Parachromis'' is a genus of cichlids native to Central America. Some species occur in Lake Nicaragua and Lake Managua. All species are predatory and relatively large for cichlids. Species There are currently five recognized species in this gen ...

'' ( W. A. Bussing, 1989) * ''

Parachromis managuensis ''Parachromis managuensis'' is a large species of cichlid native to freshwater habitats in Central America, where it is found from Honduras to Costa Rica. The binomial name refers to Lake Managua in Nicaragua, from which the holotype was obtained ...

'' ( Günther, 1867) (Jaguar cichlid, Jaguar guapote) * '' Parachromis motaguensis'' ( Günther, 1867) (False yellowjacket cichlid) Confusingly, a review in 2018 of the

type specimen In biology, a type is a particular wikt:en:specimen, specimen (or in some cases a group of specimens) of an organism to which the scientific name of that organism is formally associated. In other words, a type is an example that serves to ancho ...

of ''P. friedrichsthalii'' showed that this actually is the species that commonly has been referred to as ''P. loisellei''. As a result, ''P. loisellei'' becomes a

junior synonym In taxonomy, the scientific classification of living organisms, a synonym is an alternative scientific name for the accepted scientific name of a taxon. The botanical and zoological codes of nomenclature treat the concept of synonymy differently. ...

of ''P. friedrichsthalii'', while the yellowjacket cichlid that formerly was incorrectly referred to as ''P. friedrichsthalii'' should be referred to as ''P. multifasciatus''.

References

Parachromis Heroini Cichlid fish of Central America Taxa named by Louis Agassiz Cichlid genera {{Cichlasomatinae-stub