Solimões

This species, which may also be referred to by the alternative vernacular names 'spiny catfish', 'painted talking catfish' or 'chocolate raphael', isn't particularly common in the trade and most often exported only as bycatch among shipments of Platydoras armatulus. It appears very similar to A. cataphractus with the most useful external distinguishing character being the presence of pale blotches on the dorsal surface, between the dorsal and caudal fins, in....

The vernacular name of this fish is derived from its appearance and behaviour, rather than a genetic association with the marine barracuda, and it's also sometimes referred to as 'pike characin' or 'spotted cachorro' with local vernacular names including 'Grand dent-chien' (French Guiana), ' Cachorrinho' or 'Ueua' (Brazil). Although most species of Acestrorhynchus appear superficially similar to one another most exhibit distinguishable external chara...

This species is a member of the putative A. nasutus group of closely-related species within the genus alongside A. nasutus, A. maculipinna and A. isalineae. These are characterised by possession of two dark, longitudinal stripes, one running from the tip of the snout to the base and the other from the posterior edge of the lower maxilla to the underside of the caudal peduncle.

An obligate piscivore capable of consuming quite large prey in relation to its body size although it tends to focus on smaller prey such as tetras and related species. Newly-imported specimens may refuse to accept anything but live fishes although most can be weaned onto dead alternatives once they recognise them as edible, and some even learn to accept dried foods.

Apparently this species is polymorphic with body patterning varying significantly depending on locality. Individuals collected from black water habitats tend to be noticeably darker in overall colouration, for example, with this being particularly evident among populations from the Guiana Shield. The genus Ageneiosus was at one point classified in...

Numerous ornamental forms of this species have been selectively-bred for the aquarium trade, some of which include. It has also been assigned the 'A' number A234 under the DATZ system with possibly conspecific, related forms similarly numbered A235, A236, A237, A238, A239, A240, A241 and A242 depending on locality. The genus Apistogramma is among the most speciose of South American cichlid genera with around 70 species valid at present but many more awaiting description. In addition ...

Localities known in the hobby include 'Pastaza', 'Putumayo', 'Requena', 'Río Nanay', 'Rio Napo', 'Maniti', 'Momón', 'Río Tigre', 'Río Ampiyacu', 'Shishita', 'Shushupi', 'Yavari', 'Tefé', 'Manaquiri', 'Lago do Januari', 'Mamori' (often misspelled 'Mamuri'), 'Careiro', 'Manacapuru', 'Juruá', 'Curuaí', and 'Purutu' though we've been unable to find anywhere matching the latter name within the species' known distribution, and in fact several of these names are applied incorrectly on a regular basis.

Numerous ornamental forms of this species have been selectively line-bred for the aquarium trade, vernacular names for which include "sunset", "sunburst", "double red", "triple red", "gold", "white gold", "orange flash" and "albino". It has also been assigned the 'A' number A200 under the DATZ system with possibly conspecific, related forms similarly numbered A201, A202 and A203 depending on locality. Th...

The genus Apistogramma is among the most speciose of South American cichlid genera with around 70 species valid at present but many more awaiting description. In addition many species exist in two or more geographical colour forms which may or may not turn out to be distinct in the future. Hobbyists tend to label these with collection data if available in order to avoid mixing them and the potential of hybridisation.

This undescribed species was first collected and subsequently appeared in the aquarium hobby during 2008. It was exported again in late 2009 and early 2010 under the names A. sp. 'Jutai' and A. sp. 'diamond face', and said to have been collected in the Río Jutai, Amazonas state, Brazil. The Jutai is a south bank tributary of the Solimões but lies several hundred kilometres downstream of Leticia so this information, from a purportedly trustworthy source, initiall...

This species is also referred to as 'velvet cichlid', 'red oscar', 'tiger oscar', or 'marble cichlid'. It is a popular aquarium fish although its adult size and typical life-span of 10-20 years must be taken into account before purchase. Numerous ornamental strains are now available, and while care is more-or-less identical for all of them a degree of additional care must be taken with the 'long-finned' variety which is a little less competitive than other forms.

This species is also known by the alternative vernacular name of 'Zamora woodcat', and is often misidentified as A. thoracatus. The latter is a valid species and very similar to A. coracoideus in that the coracoid bone is exposed ventrally and covered only by a thin layer of integument in both species. The two differ principally in the number of anal fin rays...

It's most similar to A. riesei but can be told apart by its more-elongate body (depth 4-5 times, vs. 3.1-3.5 times, in SL), live body colour (silvery yellow, vs. red) and suborbital bone structure (almost complete, vs. reduced). The third species, A. lindeae, is quite different posses...

Both species also possesses a broader dark midlateral stripe on the body which tends to be more well-defined in B. lateristriga than in B. maculata. Colour pattern in B. maculata varies considerably with some specimens noticeably paler than others, for example, and the the broad midlateral stripe usually less intense in such individuals. This does not app...

Omnivorous and will accept most foods offered, with the stomach contents of wild specimens varying on a seasonal basis but mostly comprising insects and insect larvae (orders Trichoptera, Hemiptera, Homoptera) plus some terrestrial fruits and even scales of other fishes (Sánchez et al., 2003). In the aquarium offer live Daphnia, Artemia, Moina, bloodowrm, etc., vegetable matter in the form of blanched spinach, lettuce, cucumber, fruit, algae wafers, etc., and good quality, sinking dried foods.

This species is also referred to as 'South American puffer', 'SAP', 'Amazonian puffer', 'Peruvian puffer', or 'Brazilian puffer' in the ornamental trade. Within the genus Colomesus, C. asellus can be immediately identified by possessing a unique transverse row of dermal flaps across the chin which is absent in its congeners C. psittacus and C. tocantinensis.

Known from the middle and upper Amazon river basins in Brazil, Peru, Ecuador and Colombia. Type locality is 'Amazon River at Obidos, Cudajas, and Tabatinga; Rio Negro, Brazil.' It apparently practises an interesting reproductive strategy in which the eggs are deposited in a shallow depression excavated from the substrate and guarded by the male.

This species has been widely referred to as the congener C. nattereri in aquarium literature both prior to and post-publication of its official description in 2006. The two can be told apart quite easily by the fact that C. nattereri possesses a dark lateral stripe while C. meinkeni does not. C. meinkeni can be distinguished from all congeners by the followi...

This species is sometimes traded as C. sp. 'red line', 'spotted tetra' or as its congener C. nigrofasciata. In the past it's name was also widely applied to the fish now identified as C. callolepis and C. meinkeni, and this misidentification continues to an extent although the two are easily-distinguished by the fact that C. nattereri is the only one of the three possessing a dark lateral stripe on each side of the body.

Although described as a member of Corydoras this species was later moved into the genus Osteogaster by Cope (1894), but this was later synonymised with Corydoras by Gosline (1940). It is sometimes confused with C. venezuelanus, while two similar-looking, unidentified fishes from Peru have been assigned the codes CW007 and CW043, respectively.

In addition, the colour pattern in aquarium fish traded or identified as C. fowleri is highly variable, but it is unclear whether such differences represent diversity within or between populations. Nevertheless, colour pattern is typically used to distinguish them, with fish from Peru possessing a greater extent of dark pigmentation on the body generally referred to...

This species' range is unclear with collection records scarce, although it certainly occurs in the 'Tres Fronteras' region of the western Amazon river basin where the borders of Brazil, Colombia, and Peru meet. Type locality is 'Lakes of the Isla de Mocagua, Amazon River, near Leticia, Comisaría del Amazonas, 3°54'S, 70°14'W, Colombia'.

It exhibits slightly different behaviour to the majority of congeners in that it tends to swim in midwater and spends a large proportion of its time away from the substrate. Its morphology exhibits corresponding adaptations towards a pelagic existence with a relatively large eye, a more terminal mouth position, more strongly-forked caudal-fin, and more symmetrical body shape than most other Corydoras species.

The broad dark stripe in the dorsal portion of the body extends into the ventral portion on the caudal peduncle, and this character can be used to distinguish it from the very similar-looking C. zygatus, with which it is often confused. In C. zygatus the dark stripe does not extend ventrally on the caudal peduncle and is present only on the dorsal part.

This species is currently the only described member of its genus although colour pattern and morphology vary considerably across its range. You may see reference to this species being the only fish species to possess infra-red vision, but other species also possess this ability and we suspect that infra-red plays an important role in the reproductive cycle of many fishes.

This species is rare in the aquarium trade but is arguably more suitable for the home aquarium than some of its better-known relatives given its adult size and relatively docile behaviour. Other vernacular names include 'Dientón' (Peru), 'Perrito' (Ecuador), 'Payara-chata' or 'Payarin' (Venezuela) and 'Icanga', 'Minguilista' or 'Peice-cachorro' (Brazil), some of which are also applied to related species.

This species is rare in the hobby though it's name is often attached to shipments of other Geophagus species. It's a member of the nominal G. surinamensis 'group' of closely-related species within the genus and can be identified by a combination of characters including: possession of dark preopercular marking; no vertical bars on the flanks; relatively large, roughly oblong-shaped dark midlateral marking; caudal fin brownish with 3-5 light stripes on upper lobe and less well-defined stripes or mottled pattern of light spots with narrow dark interspaces on lower lobe.

This species may be referred to using a variety of names including 'scomb', 'sabre tooth tetra', 'sabre tusk barracuda', 'dog tooth characin, 'vampire fish', 'Cachorra' or Pirandirá (the latter two names being used in Brazil where they're also applied to congeners). It's regularly confused with the payara, H. armatus, though that species grows considerably larger, is pop...

In the igarapés Baré and Ubim, western Brazil H. erythrostigma was collected from stretches measuring 5-7 metres in width with thick riparian and overhanging vegetation. The substrate was mostly composed of sand and the fish displayed a preference for boundary zones between shallow and deeper water. Conductivity was measured at 14.2-62.1 mS/cm³, dissolved oxy...

The most recent diagnosis appears to be that of Géry (1977), in which it was separated from other members of the group by the following combination of characters: dorsal-fin insertion at or slightly anterior to mid-body; caudal-fin brick red to orange-red; body depth fits less than 3.6 times in SL; head length fits 3.5-4.0 times in SL; caudal peduncle length u...

This species is available on a relatively regular basis, although it's sometimes confused with the similar-looking congeners H. loretoensis and H. metae. It can be identified via the following combination of characters as per Géry (1977): elongate in shape with body depth fitting 3.8-3.9 times in its standard length; caudal peduncle narrow, its depth fitting 1.8 times in its length; head short, interorbital broad, snout short and rounded; dorsal-fin insertion an...

L. taeniata is the largest-growing and second most widely-distributed member of the genus although it's a rarely-seen in the aquarium trade. It can be distinguished from all congeners since it uniquely possesses 5 lateral scale rows between the lateral line and dorsal-fin origin (vs. 4 or 6–8 in the remaining species).

This species is relatively common in the aquarium hobby but is not easy to maintain and recommended only for experienced aquarists. It can be told apart from all congeners by specimens larger than 60 mm SL possessing an extended pectoral-fin spine forming an extremely long filament that may be more than four times the length of the first branched pectoral-fin ray (vs. not possessing such a filament in other species of Lamontichthys).

Type locality is given simply as 'Amazon River, Brazil' and according to current thinking this species has a huge natural range encompassing the Amazon River system in Brazil and Peru plus the Paraná-Paraguay drainage in southern Brazil and Paraguay and rio São Francisco basin in southern Brazil. Specimens in our images were collected fro...

This species is also referred to as 'black-anded leporinus', 'striped leporinus' and 'eight-banded leporinus'. Young specimens are often traded for aquaria without warning as to their potential size and requirements, and as a result it's fairly ubiquitous in public aquarium displays.

This species was described from Suriname but no specific locality was given. It's currently accepted to occur throughout much of the Amazon river system in Brazil, Peru and Bolivia with additional records from coastal drainages of Guyana, Suriname and French Guiana plus the island of Trinidad (Trinidad and Tobago).

Metynnis lippincottianus is occasionally seen for sale, sometimes under the name of "Silver Dollar". It is easily distinguishable from m. argenteus and m. hypsauchen (which are more commonly sold as Silver Dollars) by its spotted pattern, hence the common name. M. lippincottianus shares a common name with m. maculatus but the two can be distinguished as the spots on m. maculatus are more pronounced. Silver dollars are common and popular fish in the hobby. They are related to piranh...

This species has been referred to the genera Poecilobrycon and Nannobrycon in the past and in the aquarium hobby is also known as 'rocket', 'brown', 'brown-tailed', 'diptail', or 'tubemouth' pencilfish.It's a popular aquarium fish and has an interesting oblique swimming-style, a behavioural trait shared only with N. unifasciatus among congeners. In the original description the colour pattern is given by Steindachner as a brown lateral stripe exte...

Wild populations vary in colour pattern depending on origin, and some populations have previously been described as distinct species. A form from Peru has a particularly silvery body colour, for example, while another, marketed as 'super red' possesses an unusually long red stripe on the body, extending much of the length of the dark central stripe. A population from around Boa Vista in the rio Branco system, Pará state, Brazil has an ocellus o...

This species has had several L-numbers assigned to it, with L146 collected from an unspecified locality in Colombia and L232 from the Río Putomayo/Içá. It's exported for the aquarium trade under a number of different generic names including Hemiancistrus, Sophiancistrus and Peckoltichthys. Following Armbruster (2008) it can be to...

Quite widely distributed having been recorded from Brazil, Colombia, Peru and Venezuela. It's been collected from the upper parts of several major river drainages including the Río Negro, Río Orinoco (including the Río Inírida and Casiquiare canal) and Río Solimões. The type series was collected from 'Igarapé Préto', Brazil, said to be 60 kilometres to the south of the Colombian border city Leticia. Populations from Colombia and Brazil tend to be more intensely-coloured, and the Peruvian populations may apparently represent an undescribed species.

Pterophyllum leopoldi can be differentiated from other members of the genus by the presence of up to 11 vertical stripes on the body, though often only the 3 largest, boldest stripes can be seen. This species also shows a dark patch over the operculum. In adult specimens, a red/maroon hue over the back and fins is characteristic of the species, leading some to believe the most colourful natural form Angelfish. The name-sake roman nose possessed by the fish is also very distinctive and used as a meristic feature.

Famed as a rapacious predator capable of rapidly stripping flesh from bone and a danger to any animal entering its native waters, P. nattereri is among the most notorious freshwater fishes in the world. As a result, displays featuring this “bloodthirsty” creature are found in most public aquaria, grisly Hollywood movies have been released, and the species has become popular in the aquarium trade. Little of this infamy is based on factual evidence, however.

This species is relatively rare in the ornamental trade, where it is sometimes confused with its similarly-patterned congeners S. daemon and S. lilith. These three species all possess 1-3 dark blotches on the side of the body and a relatively large ocellus on the upper caudal-fin base, characters that immediately separate them from the remainder of the genus which lack blotches on the body and have a relatively small ocellus on the upper caudal-fin base.

S. jurupari is also known as 'demon fish', 'jurupari earth eater', 'green horse face', or simply 'jurupari' in the aquarium hobby. It can be distinguished from other members of the genus by the following combination of characters: presence of a relatively small dark ocellus on the upper caudal-fin base; absence of well-defined dark blot...

Despite its extensive natural distribution S. lilith is uncommon in the ornamental trade, where it is sometimes referred to as 'one-spotted demon fish' or 'one spot eartheater'. It can be distinguished from other members of the genus by possessing a single dark blotch on the flank and a prominent ocellus at the caudal-fin base. Among the named species it is most similar to S. daemon, but that species possesses two blotches on the flank.

T. stellatus is superficially similar to its only congener T. securis, but can immediately be identified by the presence (vs. absence) of a prominent dark spot in the dorsal-fin. It is sometimes traded as 'platinum hatchetfish'. The genus Thoracocharax was originally erected by Fowler in 1906 as a subgenus of Gasteropelecus, but was elevated to generic status by Weitzman (1960).

This species is not often available and is much sought after in the aquarium hobby where it's been traded as 'crystal rainbow tetra' and 'orange-tailed glass tetra'. It's also been referred to as a Heterocharax or Tyttocharax species in the past. It's currently the only member of its genus which is separated fr...

This is the type species of the genus Aequidens and has the widest distribution of any member species. It exists in various colour forms depending on locality with variants from Ecuador and Peru being particularly sought after since they develop striking red (Ecuador) or orange (Peru) colouration on the lower part of the jaw, head and anterior portion of the belly whereas those from Brazil tend to have an overall grey/blue/green colouration, for example. Despite its type status it's long...

It's known by various vernacular names including 'Pirá-pacu', 'Pira-pucu' or 'Diente de cao' (central Amazon), 'Bicuda' or 'Uena' (rio Tocantins), 'Bicuda' (rio Tapajós), 'Aguejeta' or 'Picua' (Venezuela), and 'Moruwi' or 'Pirapoko' (Guyana). The entire dorsal-fin base is located anteriorly to a vertical through the anal-fin origin and this character distinguishes it from all other ctenolucids except B. lucius and B. xyrekes.

This species can be told apart from the very similar-looking congener B. filamentosum by its smaller adult size (B. filamentosum can grow to almost 3 m in length), shorter maxillary barbels (never extending beyond base of adipose fin (vs. extending beyond base of adipose fin), moderately-forked with lobes of equal size (vs. deeply-forked caudal fin with upper lobe usually longer than the lower) and body col...

In the Amazon region it is only specimens larger than around 160 cm and werighing in excess of 50 kg that are referred to as 'Piraíba' with the name 'filhote' normally applied to smaller individuals. Other vernacular names include 'Salton catfish', 'Kumakuma'; and 'tiger antenna catfish'; with members of the genus often referred to collectively as 'goliath catfishes'.

Brachyplatystoma spp. are distinguished from all other catfishes by two synapomorphies. The first comprises several morphological characters relating to the skull, specifically that the mandibular suspensorium (that which connects the lower jaw bone to the skull) is greatly expanded mediodorsally to form a large plate approaching the parasphenoid bone, with the hyomandibula and metapterygoid similarly enlarged.

Found in a number of habitat-types, though rarely in smaller tributaries, generally preferring deeper, flowing channels through which it travels for considerable distances at certain times of year. Like other large, migratory pimelodids these movements are typically associated with nutrient-rich, white water drainages rather than nutrient-poor black waters.

Study of B. rousseauxii has revealed that sexually mature adults are found only in the western Amazon, with no mature individual ever recorded east of Manaus despite the intensive commercial fishery operating there. The total distance covered by some populations during migration from the delta was as much as 5500 km, making it the longest known in any freshwater fish species.

This rich feeding ground is exploited until the sea water returns, at which point the catfishes begin to migrate upstream in massive numbers, moving up the Amazon and its tributaries. Sexually mature individuals are not normally recorded during these events so they're thought related to feeding and dispersal rather than spawning. The fish are subject to intensive capture by commercial and artisanal fishing operations during this upstream movement.

This species is among the more popular Corydoras in the aquarium hobby and is widely available. It may also be referred to as 'arched cory'. There exist a number of similar-looking congeners, particularly C. urucu (Britto et al., 2009), described from the rio Urucu in Coari municipality, Amazonas state, Brazil, and C. narcissus from the rio Purus. The latter appears to have also been traded as C. sp. 'super arcuatus longnose' while a larg...

This species is popular in the aquarium hobby and unlike the majority of congeners tends to spend a fair amount of time away from the substrate, often forming groups in midwater. It has been placed in the unofficial 'C. elegans group', which contains a number of species exhibiting similarities in morphology and colour pattern, some of which remain unidentified in scientific terms.

This species is relatively rare in the aquarium trade. It can be differentiated from all congeners by a combination of possessing ctenoid (vs. cycloid) scales on the sides of the head plus lacking a dark spot at the caudal-fin base.

Given its eventual size and natural behaviour this species is largely unsuitable for the home aquarium, and we know of only a handful of private aquarists with the facilities required to house it long-term. Unfortunately juveniles are readily available in the trade, although the scarcity of privately-maintained adults would suggest that most fail to reach their potential.

R. vulpinus is the most widely-distributed member of the family Cynodontidae. Type locality is given simply as 'Brazilian rivers', but this species is currently understood to be distributed in the Amazon basin from the Río Ucayali system in Peru, eastward as far as the rio Xingu in Brazil, plus the rio Tocantins and Rio Capim basins. It's also known from the Río Orinoco ba...