Habitat: This
species is very common in the Guayas River drainage,
Portoviejo River and Esmeraldas River. Description:
This species is distinguished from other Rhamdia
species in South America by a large head with head
length 25.8–30.1% of standard length, base of
the adipose fin 30.3–33.3% of standard length,
outer mental barbels extending to the base of the
pectoral rays, and presence of a faint lateral longitudinal
band (Hernandez et al., 2015). It can be distinguished
from Pimelodella in western Ecuador, which
are morphologically similar to small Rhamdia,
because the posterior projection of the occipital
process does not extend to the dorsal fin origin (Glodek,
1978). Reproduction: Its reproduction
is synchronised with the rainy season. Aquarium
Care: In the aquarium you should treat this
species as you would any "Pim" and house
them with tank mates that are the same size or larger
and who occupy a different layer of the tank be it
mid water or top. Provide plenty of hiding places
if you intend to keep more than one individual. This
species will probably not be exported as an aquarium
specimen as they do grow to a large size. Diet:
It prefers slow moving waters and feeds on aquatic
insects, small fish, and plant material that falls
into rivers such as fruits, seeds and flowers. Remarks:
Historically, there has been much taxonomic confusion
on the identitity of the species of Rhamdia
in western Ecuador and it had been recognised under
the names R. wagneri and the broadly distributed
R.
quelen. It now
appears that R. cinerascens is a valid species
and is endemic to western Ecuador (Hernandez, 2015).
Common
Name:
None
Synonyms:
Pimelodus cinerascens
Family:
Heptapteridae
Distribution:
South America:Ecuador, Guayas River drainage, Portoviejo
River, and Esmeraldas River.
Size:
39.0cm. (15¾ins)
Temp:
24-26°C (75-79°F)
p.H.
6.0-7.0.
Reference:
Froese, R. and D. Pauly.
Editors. 2021. FishBase. World Wide Web electronic
publication. www.fishbase.org, version (05/2021). Windsor, Aquirre. Freshwater
Fishes of Western Ecuador.
(05/2021). iNaturalist Ecuador (05/2021). Hernández Torres, Carmen
Liliana, "Species Delimitation, Phylogenetics,
and Biogeography of the Catfish Genus Rhamdia Bleeker
(Heptapteridae) of Central America and the Trans-Andean
Region of Colombia" (2015). Dissertations. 87.
Rhamdia cinerascens Chongon Reservoir near city of Guayaquil
Rhamdia
cinerascens Quevedo, Ecuador
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