Paretroplus gymnopreopercularis is a species of cichlid from the vicinity of the confluence of the Amboaboa and Mangarahara Rivers near Mandritsara in northern Madagascar.Sparks, J. S. (2008). Phylogeny of the Cichlid Subfamily Etroplinae and Taxonomic Revision of the Malagasy Cichlid Genus Paretroplus (Teleostei: Cichlidae). Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History Number 314 :1–151 Until its official scientific description in 2008, it was temporarily known as the Paretroplus nov. sp. "sofia". It is endangered because of habitat degradation, overfishing and invasive species. Following the construction of a dam on the Mangarahara River, surveys have failed to relocate P. gymnopreopercularis in this river.
This relatively elongate Paretroplus reaches about in length and is closely related to P. kieneri, which it resembles. P. nourissati is found in the same region as P. gymnopreopercularis, but the latter appears to be restricted to deeper pools in the river (the former is from shallow, fast-flowing sections). The member of another cichlid genus, Ptychochromis insolitus, is also restricted to the region.Stiassny, M., and Sparks, J. S. (2006). Phylogeny and Taxonomic Revision of the Endemic Malagasy Genus Ptychochromis (Teleostei: Cichlidae), with the Description of Five New Species and a Diagnosis for Katria, New Genus. American Museum Novitates 3535.
Its habitat is shallow, clear rivers with a fast current and many areas of small waterfalls and riffles, normally with a rocky river bed, with many boulders, with sandy areas mixed in. This species shows a preference for deeper, more isolated pools.
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