Classification / Names
Common names | Synonyms | Catalog of Fishes(genus, species) | ITIS | CoL | WoRMS | Cloffa
Teleostei (teleosts) >
Siluriformes (Catfishes) >
Trichomycteridae (Pencil or parasitic catfishes) > Trichomycterinae
Etymology: Trichomycterus: Greek, thrix = hair + Greek, mykter, -eros = nose (Ref. 45335).
More on authors: Fernández & Vari.
Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range
Ecology
Freshwater; benthopelagic. High altitude; 26°S - 27°S
South America: Laguna Blanca basin in Catamarca, Argentina.
Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm ? range ? - ? cm
Max length : 4.2 cm male/unsexed; (Ref. 39970)
Short description
Identification keys | Morphology | Morphometrics
Dorsal spines (total): 0; Dorsal soft rays (total): 12 - 13; Anal spines: 0; Anal soft rays: 11 - 12; Vertebrae: 37 - 39. Eye covered by thin, transparent skin. Species differs from all other known members of the subfamily Trichomycterinae by the combination of its lack of both the pelvic fins and girdle, eight or nine principle dorsal fin rays, 37-39 vertebrae, 18-20 ribs on each side, the elongate body with a transversely flattened caudal peduncle, the posteriorly straight and slightly posterodorsally angled caudal fin margin, the lack of pronounced marmorated pigmentation on the body and fins, its lack of s very thick, rugose layer of fatty tissue on the body and head, the presence of a portion of the laterosensory canal system within the sphenotic, the lack of an extensive perforation of the skin surface by pores of the ampullary organs, and its maximum length.
Collected from a 0.5 m deep, small, clear water stream with a sandy bottom at an elevation of approximately 3500 m. The stomachs of two specimens contained dipteran larvae (Chironomidae and Ceratopogonidae), filamentous algae, and sand indicating that the species feeds, at least in part on autochthonous benthic macroinvertebrates (Ref. 37038).
Life cycle and mating behavior
Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae
Fernández, L. and R.P. Vari, 2000. New species of Trichomycterus (Teleostei: Siluriformes: Trichomycteridae) lacking a pelvic fin and girdle from the Andes of Argentina. Copeia 2000(4):990-996. (Ref. 37038)
IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435: Version 2024-1)
Threat to humans
Harmless
Human uses
Fisheries: of no interest
Tools
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Estimates based on models
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref.
82804): PD
50 = 0.5000 [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.00851 (0.00358 - 0.02025), b=2.93 (2.74 - 3.12), in cm total length, based on LWR estimates for this Genus-body shape (Ref.
93245).
Trophic level (Ref.
69278): 2.8 ±0.31 se; based on food items.
Resilience (Ref.
120179): Low, minimum population doubling time 4.5 - 14 years (Assuming Fec < 100).
Fishing Vulnerability (Ref.
59153): Low vulnerability (10 of 100).
