Loricariinae

Loricariinae
	Pygmy sturgeon ( Sturisomatichthys leightoni )
Systematics
Cohort :	Otomorpha
Sub-cohort :	Ostariophysi
Order :	Catfish (Siluriformes)
Subordination :	Loricarioidei
Family :	Armored catfish (Loricariidae)
Subfamily :	Loricariinae
Scientific name
	Loricariinae
	Bonaparte , 1831

The Loricariinae are a subfamily of South American catfish that have adapted to life in fast-flowing streams and rivers. In German, the fish are often referred to as witch catfish .

features

The Loricariinae are characterized by their slender, elongated body shape, their long and flattened caudal fin stalk and the lack of an adipose fin . They have only one row of bone plates on each side of the body. They are very variable in body shape, morphology of the sucking mouth and teeth. Many species show pronounced sexual dimorphism , which is reflected in the increase in the size of the pectoral fin rays of the males and on the lips and the structure of the teeth. Some species are toothless.

Way of life

From their way of life, two ecotypes can be distinguished within the Loricariinae, sand dwellers and those living on stones and wood substrates. The first group eats an omnivorous and / or carnivorous diet and often has a specially designed mouth with many lips to feel food in the sandy bottom of the water. The loricarines that live on stones or wood have a very powerful mouth to hold on to and feed on algae as a growth eater. All Loricariinae practice brood care. Among them there are substrate spawners , cave breeders and mouth or lip breeders .

Internal system

There are 31 genera and over 200 species in two branches .

Loricariini tribe

Spatuloricaria
Loricaria group
- Brochiloricaria
- Loricaria
- Paraloricaria
- Ricola
Loricariichthy's group
- Furcodontichthys
- Hemiodontichthys
- Limatulichthys
- Loricariichthys
- Pseudoloricaria
Pseudohemiodon group
- Apistoloricaria
- Crossoloricaria
- Dentectus
- Planiloricaria
- Pyxiloricaria
- Rhadinoloricaria
- Pseudohemiodon
- Reganella
Rineloricaria group
- Dasyloricaria
- Ixinandria
- Rineloricaria

Tribus Harttiini

literature

R. Covain, S. Fisch-Muller: The genera of the Neotropical armored catfish subfamily Loricariinae (Siluriformes: Loricariidae): a practical key and synopsis. Zootaxa 1462: 1-40 (2007) PDF
Günther Sterba : The world's freshwater fish. 2nd Edition. Urania, Leipzig / Jena / Berlin 1990, ISBN 3-332-00109-4 .

Web links

Commons : Loricariinae - collection of images, videos and audio files