Original description as Tilapia oligacanthus:
ZooBank:B4FF2DB4-C101-4C98-89F5-3BEEC9CB3E0F.
- Bleeker, Pieter. 1868. "Description de trois espèces inédites de Chromidoïdes de Madagascar". Verslagen en Mededeelingen van de Koninklijke Akademie van Wetenschappen te Amsterdam, Afdeeling Natuurkunde. 2; pp. 307-309 (crc00015)
Synonyms (2):
- Tilapia oligacanthus var. nossibeensis Bleeker, 1868, with type locality at Lake Pambilao, Nossi-Bé, Madagascar. Determiner: Sparks, 2002
- Ptychochromis madagascariensis Sauvage, 1891, with type locality at Itasy Lake, east of Antananarivo, central Madagascar. Determiner: Boulenger, 1915
Conservation: Ptychochromis oligacanthus is evaluated by the international union for the conservation of nature in the iucn red list of threatened species as (EN) endangered (2016). Whereas populations on Nosy Be appear to be stable for the time being (Loiselle, 2005), mainland populations are threatened by rampant deforestation and habitat degradation or destruction throughout their range. Diversion of water for large-scale irrigation projects poses a particular threat to the populations of this species in the basins of the Mananjeba and the Mahavavy du Nord (Loiselle in litt.).