AqualogNEWS100
25
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A
because the differences between the two
speciesaresoslight.
In 1968 it was discovered that the two
species in factcross-breed;thehybridswere,
moreover, formerly described as separate
species,
specifically
Holacanthus
bermudensis
Goode, 1876 and
Holacanthus
townsendi
(N
ICHOLS
& M
OWBRAY
, 1914). In
short, the likelihood of discovering a new,
largeangelfishon theAtlanticcoastofBrazil
is about as small as that of finding a new
speciesofdeer in the forestsofGermany.
Howdid thenewangel come to light?
Luis Gladstone Neto and Hudson Crizanto,
from Fortaleza inBrazil, visitedour editorial
offices after Interzoo, and asked me to
identify an angelfish which, they said, was
foundatFortaleza.Itwas,however,very rare;
there were several hundred
Holacanthus
ciliaris
for every one of the new species.
When I looked at the photos my first
reaction was that it might be a hybrid
between
Holacanthus
species: the study of
hybrids ismygreatpassion.
A close relative of
H. ciliaris
: an adult Blue
Angel,
H. isabelita
.
Photo:Tomizana/ArchivA.C.S.
Unfortunately this isnot averygoodphoto,but it provides aunique recordof the3 typesof
Holacanthus
from Fortaleza. Left: the yellow phase of
H. ciliaris
– this fish exhibits very clearly the crown-likemarking
typicalof thespecies,towhich itowes itsname“QueenAngel”.Right: in the foreground,
H
.sp.“Gladstone”, in
thebackgroundanother
H.ciliaris
,both fish in thegreenphase. Photo:GladstoneAquarium
