English name:
Xantus' Ilyodon

Family:
Goodeidae JORDAN, 1923.

Subfamily:
Goodeinae JORDAN, 1923.

Original description:
HUBBS, C. L. & TURNER, C. L. (1939): Studies of the fishes of the order Cyprinodontes. 16. A revision of the Goodeidae. Misc. Publ. Mus. Zool. Univ. Mich., 42: p. 1-80.

Origin of the species name:
the name xantusi refers to Mr. John XANTUS.

Type locality:
Rio Colima, Haciendo Los Limones, 2 km southwest of Villa Alvarez; Colima, Mexico.

Meristic properties:
Dorsal fin = 14 - 17 (usually 15) rays;
Anal fin = 11 - 14 (usually 13) rays;
Ventral fin = 6 rays;
Pectoral fin = 14 rays.

The breeding of this species is without difficulty. At birth the fry are approx. 2 cm long and they are completely ignored by the older fish.

The highest number of living offspring from one birth that I know was 111. In this case a full-grown female of about 10 cm length delivered them. Another female, equal in size, delivered "only" 43 young about the same time; however, these were nearly the double size of the young from the other spawn.

Particularly astonishing is that both females had only stillbirths up to that time.