Acanthicus hystrix

Acanthicus hystrix, the lyre-tail pleco,[2] is a species of armored catfish native to the Amazon, Tocantins–Araguaia and Orinoco basins.[1] It is typically found at various depths on a rock or rock–gravel bottom in the main channel of rivers in places with moderate to strong current,[1] although it also occurs in slow currents.[2] The species is occasionally seen in the aquarium trade, but its adult size and territorially aggressive behavior means that a very large tank is required.[2]

Not to be confused with Pseudacanthicus histrix.

Acanthicus hystrix
From the Xingu River (Altamira, Pará, Brazil)
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Siluriformes
Family: Loricariidae
Genus: Acanthicus
Species:
A. hystrix
Binomial name
Acanthicus hystrix
Agassiz in Spix & Agassiz, 1829[1]
Synonyms

Appearance

It grows to 62.8 cm (2.06 ft) in standard length,[1] but may possibly reach 100 cm (3.3 ft).[2] Its color ranges from medium-brown to near-black (especially those from the Madeira, Branco and Xingu rivers are dark), and the underparts often have a vermiculated pattern.[1] Some of the variants are commonly considered as separate, undescribed species in the aquarium trade (e.g., L193 from the Orinoco basin and L407 from the Branco basin; in the L-number system), but there is extensive overlap in the morphometrics of the different populations.[1] Unlike the polka dot lyre-tail pleco (A. adonis), A. hystrix never has white spots.[1] Adults males are especially spiny with extensive odontodes on the cheeks and opercle.[1]

References
  1. Chamon, C.C. (2016): Redescription of Acanthicus hystrix Agassiz, 1829 (Siluriformes: Loricariidae), with comments on the systematics and distribution of the genus. Zootaxa, 4088 (3): 395–408.
  2. "Acanthicus hystrix". SeriouslyFish. Retrieved 31 October 2017.


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