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Trichomycterus dali Rizzato, Costa, Trajano & Bichuette, 2011

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Description: Trichomycterus dali is readily distinguished from epigean and hypogean congeners by the presence of two conspicuous, ridge-like adipose folds lining dorsally throughout the body, one anterior (pre-dorsal) and one posterior (post-dorsal) to the dorsal fin, both distinctive autapomorphies in the genus. Other characters that easily distinguish the new species, although not exclusive, are: highly reduced skin pigmentation (except for T. gorgona and caverestricted congeners, T. chaberti, T. itacarambiensis, T. spelaeus, T. sandovali, T. santanderensis and T. uisae); total loss of eyes, not visible externally (except for T. sandovali and T. spelaeus); barbels long, especially the nasal (99.3- 143.5% HL) and the maxillary (97.0-131.3% HL) (except for T. longibarbatus and T. spelaeus); scapulocoracoid with a conspicuous anterior process projected forward (except for T. sandovali, T. spelaeus and T. uisae), with a narrow base, a wide apex and a rounded distal margin; and pectoral-fin ray count reaching I,9 (except for T. hualco). Characters possibly exclusive, but about which many taxa lack information, are listed as complementary diagnoses: cranial fontanel unique, extending from the posterior half of supraoccipital to the posterior region of the frontal bones, with a conspicuous constriction on the meeting point of supraoccipital and the two frontal bones; supraorbital long and cylindrical, without projections, with a needle appearance; 27-29 interopercular and 16-19 opercular odontodes. Colouration: Body generally white, tending to translucent, dorsal ridge darker than body, with light yellow color. Internal organs seen by transparency. Etymology: The specific name (a noun in apposition) is an allusion to the Spanish artist Salvador Dali, in reference to his famously long moustache (or whisker).

Common Name:

None

Synonyms:

None

Family:

Trichomycteridae

Distribution:

South America: Brazil, Known exclusively from subterranean waters in at least three caves in Serra da Bodoquena karst area: Buraco das Abelhas, Saracura and Morro do Jericó caves.

Size:

8.0cm. (3¼ins)

Temp:

16-26°c (59-79°f.)

p.H.

6.0-7.0.

IUCN Red List

Trichomycterus dali is distributed in the Serra da Bodoquena, municipality of Bonito, state of Mato Grosso do Sul. Its extent of occurrence (EOO) is inferred to be 600 km² . Most of the caves are not located in protected areas, but rather in the vicinity of the Serra da Bodoquena National Park. Two main threats affect the species: the expansion of limestone mining activity in the southern portion and the expansion of livestock farming in the northern portion of the species' distribution. These activities are causing pollution and lowering of the water table, as well as the complete destruction of cave systems in the vicinity of the Park, which generate a continued decline in habitat quality. 7-10 locations were identified in the species' extent of occurrence area. Therefore, the species was classified as Vulnerable (VU) according to criteria B1ab(iii). It is essential to establish protective measures for the karst systems of the Serra da Bodoquena. Studies that elucidate possible differences between the subpopulations of the northern and southern portions are also needed, such as phylogenetic and molecular biology studies, (IUCN 2022).

Reference:

Froese, R. and D. Pauly. Editors. 2017. FishBase. World Wide Web electronic publication. www.fishbase.org, ( 06/2017 ).
Instituto Chico Mendes de Conservação da Biodiversidade (ICMBio). 2022. Trichomycterus dali. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2022.
Rizzato, P.P., E.P.D. Costa Jr. and M.E. Bichuette, 2011. Trichomycterus dali: a new highly troglomorphic catfish (Silurifomes [sic!]: Trichomycteridae) from Serra da Bodoquena, Mato Grosso do Sul State, Central Brazil. Neotrop. Ichthyol. 9(3):477-491.

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

Trichomycterus dali
Adult

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