Félix Losantos (NAJE)
(1967-2020)

Félix Losantos was an aquarium enthusiast from an early age. He began keeping killifish in 2015 after attending the SEK Convention in Zaragoza. He was a member of both SEK and the Rioja Aquarium Association.

His first killifish were Pachypanchax playfairii “Mahé”, Fundulopanchax gardneri “Nsukka”, and Nothobranchius korthausae “Red”, which he acquired at the convention auction. He was also given peat containing the eggs of Hypsolebias alternatus and Nematolebias papilliferus “Inoã”, which he considered “something out of witchcraft”, as he described it in his introduction as a SEK member.

His involvement in the hobby was total. In his very first year as a member, he won several awards at the convention and established himself as a successful breeder. He undertook two collecting and observation trips: one to Brazil in 2018, where, while pursuing his other hobby, rod-and-reel fishing, he visited and observed several killifish biotopes; and another to Equatorial Guinea in 2019 with Francisco J. Malumbres, David González, and José Ángel Silvo.

During the 2019 expedition he collected a species that had been under study since 2018. Later, in 2022, this species would be described by Francisco J. Malumbres as Aphyosemion losantosi, named in his honour.

On December 1, 2020, Félix Losantos passed away suddenly. He was a generous colleague, a good friend, and left a lasting impression on all who knew him. (text by Merche González)

Note – The editor would like to express his gratitude to Merche González Solórzano for the information she shared, which conveys the affection and warmth with which she remembers Félix. With this tribute, The Killifish Collections Project honors a man who is fondly remembered by all who knew him and who has earned his place among the ranks of exceptional explorers.