Rocio


Rocio is a small genus of cichlid freshwater fishes from southern Mexico and northern Central America.

Species

There are currently four recognized species in this genus:Rocio gemmata Contreras-Balderas & Schmitter-Soto, 2007 – from the Yucatan Peninsula, MexicoRocio ocotal Schmitter-Soto, 2007 – from Lake Ocotal, MexicoRocio octofasciata – from Honduras to southern MexicoRocio spinosissimaLake Izabal basin, Guatemala
These have historically been placed in the genera Cichlasoma or Heros, but they are quite distinct. R. gemmata and R. ocotal were typically regarded as populations of the closely related R. octofasciata until 2007; a review in 2018 recommended that R. gemmata should be considered a synonym of R. octofasciata, whereas a review in 2021 argued that they should be recognized as separate.

Etymology

The genus name is derived from name of J. J. Schmitter-Soto's wife. Meaning dew of the morning in Spanish, this ties in with the colorful spotting that is found in members of this genus.