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Lasiancistrus guacharote (Valenciennes, 1840)

Image contributors to this species:

Muséum national d'histoire naturelle (3)

ScotCat Sources:

Other Sources:

Relevant Information:

Description: This species can be distinguished from all its congeners except for L. schomburgkii by having a single to a small patch of platelets ventromedially from the insertion of the pectoral-fin spine and nowhere else ventrally, and from by having black spots in the dorsal fin (vs. no or white spots) and black bands in the paired and caudal fins (vs. bands absent). Aquarium Care: Relatively easy to keep but large males may tend to be territorial. Sexual Differences: Males have longer pectoral fins and have a heavier growth of odontodes behind the gill covers and on the edges of the snout. Diet: Herbivore: vegetarian food, tablets and pellets, insect larvae, zooplankton and soft wood. Etymology: The specific name guacharote: per Valenciennes, local name for this catfish on Puerto Rico, but this catfish does not occur there (possibly its name in the Lake Maracaibo basin of Venezuela, its actual type locality).

Common Name:

None

Synonyms:

Hypostomus guacharote, Ancistrus mystacinus, Lasiancistrus maracaiboensis

Family:

Loricariidae

Distribution:

South America: Lake Maracaibo basin, Venezuela. Type locality: Río Socuy, 3 km. above its mouth, Venezuela.

Size:

12.0cm. TL (4¾ins)

Temp:

25-29°c (77-85°f.)

p.H.

6.0-7.5.

IUCN Red List

Lasiancistrus guacharote is distributed in the Lake Maracaibo system in Venezuela and Colombia. Although there is little information on its population, habitat and ecology across its small range, there is no evidence of a direct threat affecting the species and its population is presumed to be stable. Therefore, Lasiancistrus guacharote is assessed as Least Concern (IUCN 2023).

Reference:

Armbruster, J.W., 2005. The loricariid catfish genus Lasiancistrus (Siluriformes) with descriptions of two new species. Neotrop. Ichthyol. 3(4):549-569.
Ferraris, C.J. Jr., 2007. Checklist of catfishes, recent and fossil (Osteichthyes: Siluriformes), and catalogue of siluriform primary types. Zootaxa 1418:1-628.
Fisch-Muller, S., 2003. Loricariidae-Ancistrinae (Armored catfishes). p. 373-400. In R.E. Reis, S.O. Kullander and C.J. Ferraris, Jr. (eds.) Checklist of the Freshwater Fishes of South and Central America. Porto Alegre: EDIPUCRS, Brasil.
Froese, R. and D. Pauly. Editors. 2022. FishBase. World Wide Web electronic publication. www.fishbase.org, ( 08/2022 ).
The ETYFish Project Fish Name Etymology Database © Christopher Scharpf.
Varella, H.R. 2023. Lasiancistrus guacharote. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2023.

Family: Loricariidae Back to Ident-A-Cat Click on Thumbnails

Lasiancistrus guacharote
Syntype-lateral view

Lasiancistrus guacharote
Syntype-dorsal view

Lasiancistrus guacharote
Syntype-ventral view

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