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Montaña, C. G., C. Nimee, S. Scott, et al. 2025 (1) de Pinna, M. C. C., & Dagosta, F. C. P. 2022 (1) Dominick Porcelli (1)

Paracanthopoma parva has been found on the gills of another species of giant catfish, Brachyplatystoma vaillantii. Species within the genus Paracanthopoma have the longest and most robust snout, and the longest and strongest dentary teeth among blood-feeding candirus, which fit their drilling needs. Riding on a giant host is advantageous for dispersal, no need to search for hosts to feed, and protection from predators. It is unlikely that Paracanthopoma takes blood from the tiny holes it drills in the skin; the areas these fish attach to have no large blood vessels to supply them with blood, and fish that have been riding are found only with trace amounts of blood in their digestive tracts. Also, most vandelliine candirus take blood from the gill region of their hosts (Zuanon, Jansen; Sazima, Ivan (2005). Aquarium Care: Not easy to keep and would need to be housed on their own as larger fish would be preyed upon for their blood in the gill chambers. Sand is the best substrate for digging themselves into and floating plants to cut the light down for this light sensitive species. Diet: Very difficult as all reports seem to intimate that they need larger fish to feed on. Etymology: The genus name Paracanthopoma: pará (Gr.), near, referring to similarity to Acanthopoma (Stegophilinae), both of which possess united gill membranes that are free from the isthmus. The specific name parva: Latin for small, described at 25 mm.

Bagrecito (Spanish)

None

Trichomycteridae

South America: Amazon basin, Brazil, and Essequibo River basin, Guyana. Type locality: Rio Catrymany supérieur [Brazil].

2.5cm (1ins)

23-26°c (73-79°f.)

6.0-7.0.

Brejão, G.L. 2023. Paracanthopoma parva. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2023.
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de Pinna, M. C. C., & Dagosta, F. C. P. (2022). A taxonomic review of the vampire catfish genus Paracanthopoma Giltay, 1935 (Siluriformes, Trichomycteridae), with descriptions of nine new species and a revised diagnosis of the genus. Papéis Avulsos De Zoologia, 62, e202262072.
Ferraris, C.J. Jr., 2007. Checklist of catfishes, recent and fossil (Osteichthyes: Siluriformes), and catalogue of siluriform primary types. Zootaxa 1418:1-628.
Fish in the News 2025.
Froese, R. and D. Pauly. Editors. 2025. FishBase. World Wide Web electronic publication. www.fishbase.org, ( 08/2025).
The ETYFish Project Fish Name Etymology Database © Christopher Scharpf.
Zuanon, Jansen; Sazima, Ivan (2005). "Free Meals on Long-Distance Cruisers: The Vampire Fish Rides Giant Catfishes in the Amazon" (PDF). Biota Neotropica. 5 (1): 109.