Parotocinclus doceanus

Parotocinclus doceanus
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN 3.1)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Actinopterygii
Division:	Teleostei
Order:	Siluriformes
Family:	Loricariidae
Genus:	Parotocinclus
Species:	P. doceanus
Binomial name
Parotocinclus doceanus (A. Miranda-Ribeiro, 1918)
Synonyms
Microlepidogaster doceanus A. Miranda-Ribeiro, 1918

Parotocinclus doceanusis a species of freshwater ray-finned fish belonging to the family Loricariidae, the suckermouth armoured catfishes, and the subfamily Hypoptopomatinae, the cascudinhos. This catfish is endemic to Brazil.

Taxonomy

Parotocinclus doceanus was first formally described in 1918 as Microlepidogaster doceanus by the Brazilian biologist Alípio de Miranda Ribeiro with its type locality given as the Doce River in the Brazilian state of Espírito Santo. Eschmeyer's Catalog of Fishes classifies the genus Parotocinclus in the subfamily Hypoptopomatinae, the cascudinhos, within the suckermouth armoured catfish family Loricariidae.

Etymology

Parotocinclus doceanus is classified in the genus Parotocinclus, is a combination of para, meaning "near", and the genus Otocinclus, the genus the type species, P. maculicauda was originally thought to be a member of. The specific name, bahiensis, suffixes Doce, meaning the Doce River, with -anus, a Latin suffix meaning "belonging to", the Doce River being the type locality.

Description

Parotocinclus doceanus reaches a standard length of 3.1 cm (1.2 in).

Distribution and habitat

Parotocinclus doeceanus is endemic to Brazil where it occurs in the Mucuri and Doce river basins, including coastal rivers between these basins, in the states of Espírito Santo and Minas Gerais. This catfish is found in streams which are 0.5 to 1 m (1 ft 8 in to 3 ft 3 in) in depth, where the stream bed is made up mainly of sand and clay, as well as containing gravel, rocks and leaf litter> The marginal vegetation is mainly grasses and emergent plants, and the surrounding vegetation varies from intact riparian vegetation to degraded, this includes forest fragments, secondary forest, pasture, agriculture and buildings.

References