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Allan James (1) clunk (3) Peru Aquarium Group (5) Johnny Jensen's Photographic Library (1) Erlend D. Bertelsen (1)

Description: Adults males are especially spiny with extensive odontodes on the cheeks and opercle. Colouration: Ranges from medium-brown to near-black (especially those from the Madeira, Branco and Xingu rivers that are dark), and the underparts often have a vermiculated pattern. Some of the variants are commonly considered as separate, undescribed species in the aquarium trade (e.g., L193 from the Orinoco basin and L407 from the Branco basin), but there is extensive overlap in the morphometrics of the different populations. Unlike the polka dot lyre-tail pleco (A. adonis), A. hystrix never has white spots. Aquarium Care: One of the larger Loricariids known, so would need to be kept in exceptionally large aquariums. Intolerant of other large Loricariids. Diet: Omnivores and will require large amounts of vegetable foods, tablet and frozen foods such as shrimps and mussels. There are only two described species in this genera, this species and A. adonis. Etymology: The specific name hysrix: Meaning hedgehog pertaining to the spiny body.

Lyre Tail Pleco, L155

Rinelepis acanthicus

Loricariidae

Brazil: Amazon River basin. Type locality: flumine Amazonum.

70.0cm. (28ins)

25-29°c (77-85°f.)

6.0-7.5.

Chamon, C.C. (2016): Redescription of Acanthicus hystrix Agassiz, 1829 (Siluriformes: Loricariidae), with comments on the systematics and distribution of the genus. Zootaxa, 4088 (3): 395–408.
Salvador, G.N. 2023. Acanthicus hystrix. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2023.
Seidel, I. 2008. Back to Nature guide to L-catfishes, Ettlingen, Germany 208 p.