Elliot has a modern fish tank that is in the shape of an oblique prism, shown below.

As mentioned in past posts, the taxonomy or naming of lifeforms is a complex, regulated affair not unlike that of legal proceedings, and the process is the same: determining which scientist’s assessment is valid and whether it should be upheld over past rulings. The next step was to figure out who came up with the name Thoricthys in the first place. Countless fascinating stories remain to be told about cichlids. Many cichlids are cornerstones of the aquarium fish trade, while one in particular dominates the farmed seafood industry. Some cichlids nurse their babies via their body slime, and others nest in empty snail shells.

Thoricthys belong to Family Cichlidae - the cichlids (pronounced sick-lids) - an incredibly diverse group of fishes found on four continents, sporting a dazzling variety of colors, shapes and behaviors. There, I looked up the genus Thorichthys - which are species of freshwater fishes topping around 6 inches (15 cm) and found in the rivers of Atlantic Central America, in Mexico, Guatemala, and Belize. My go-to reference for ichthyological information is. Ichthys comes from the Greek word for fishes (ἰχθύς), so does Thorichthys literally mean “Thor-fish”? I had to dig around to find out. Waiting in line at the cinema last night, I recalled that there was a genus of fish named Thorichthys, after staring at all the advertisements around me.

Elliot has a modern fish tank that is in the shape of an oblique prism, shown below.