Pseudostegophilus
Genus of fishes
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Pseudostegophilus is a genus of freshwater ray-finned fish belonging to the family Trichomycteridae, the pencil and parasitic catfishes, and the subfamily Stegophilinae, the parasitic catfishes.[1] These catfishes are found in rivers in tropical South America. The members of this genus are obligate parasites that feed on scales and mucus of other fish.
| Pseudostegophilus | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Division: | Teleostei |
| Order: | Siluriformes |
| Family: | Trichomycteridae |
| Subfamily: | Stegophilinae |
| Genus: | Pseudostegophilus C. H. Eigenmann & R. S. Eigenmann, 1889[1] |
| Type species | |
| Stegophilus nemurus | |
| Synonyms[1] | |
| |
Species
Pseudostegophilus contains the following valid species:[2]
- Pseudostegophilus haemomyzon (Myers, 1942)
- Pseudostegophilus maculatus (Steindachner, 1879)
- Pseudostegophilus nemurus (Günther, 1869)
- Pseudostegophilus paulensis A. Miranda-Ribeiro, 1918
Distribution and biology
P. haemomyzon originates from the Orinoco River basin in Venezuela while P. nemurus is found in the Amazon basin in Brazil and Peru.[3] P. haemomyzon grows to about 5.7 centimetres (2.2 in) SL.[4] P. nemurus grows to about 15.0 cm (5.9 in) TL.[5] P. nemurus is said to become attached to the gills, anal region, and fins of dead, dying, or disabled fishes.[5] P. maculatus originates from the lower Paraná and Uruguay River basins in Argentina, Brazil, and Uruguay, while P. paulensis is from the upper Paraná River basin in Brazil.[3] The remaining Pseudostegophilus species grow to about 5.4–6.0 centimetres (2.1–2.4 inches) in length.[6][7] P. maculatus enters the gill chamber of the catfish Luciopimelodus pati and feeds on the gills.[6]