Ear grated catfish

Ear grated catfish
	Otocinclus spec.
Systematics
Sub-cohort :	Ostariophysi
Order :	Catfish (Siluriformes)
Subordination :	Loricarioidei
Family :	Armored catfish (Loricariidae)
Subfamily :	Hypoptopomatinae
Genre :	Ear grated catfish
Scientific name
	Otocinclus
	Cope , 1871

The ear grating catfish ( Otocinclus ) are a genus of the armor catfish (Loricariidae). The scientific name comes from ous = " ear " and kinklis = "grid" and refers to the grid-like posterior bones (post-temporal).

distribution

Earthritic catfish live in South America , west of the Andes Cordillera , Brazil , Colombia , Venezuela , Paraguay , Ecuador , Peru and Bolivia ( Amazon , Río de la Plata ), in forest streams and small rivers with dense bank vegetation, between dead wood and aquatic plants.

features

Ear lattice catfish are small fish, their size is between 2 and 6 centimeters. Your body is elongated and slightly flattened in front. The tail stalk of the animals has an almost rectangular cross-section. On the belly side, the bone shields typical of armored catfish are interrupted by bare zones.

Reproduction

The ear grated catfish react to changes in air pressure and temperature fluctuations followed by water rich in suspended matter, which occurs in the rainy season . After the animals perceive these changes, the males start chasing after the females. When the females have now laid the eggs well protected between stones and roots, the males fertilize the eggs. After about 3 to 4 days, the larvae hatch and after a few days they begin to swim freely.

Systematics

Otocinclus sp.

Otocinclus cocama

So far 17 species have been classified:

Otocinclus batmani Lehmann A., 2006
Otocinclus bororo Schaefer, 1997
Otocinclus caxarari Schaefer, 1997
Otocinclus cocama rice, 2004
Otocinclus flexilis Cope, 1894
Otocinclus hasemani Steindachner, 1915
Otocinclus hoppei Miranda Ribeiro, 1939
Otocinclus huaorani Schaefer, 1997
Otocinclus juruenae Ribeiro & Lehmann, 2016
Otocinclus macrospilus Eigenmann & Allen, 1942
Otocinclus mariae Fowler, 1940
Otocinclus mimulus Axenrot & Kullander, 2003
Otocinclus mura Schaefer, 1997
Otocinclus tapirape Britto & Moreira, 2002
Otocinclus vestitus Cope, 1872
Otocinclus vittatus Regan, 1904
Otocinclus xakriaba Schaefer, 1997

Sources and further information

Individual evidence

↑ www.remowiechert.de
↑ Ear grated catfish on Fishbase.org (English)

literature

Günther Sterba : Freshwater fish in the world . Weltbild Verlag, Augsburg 2002, ISBN 3-89350-991-7 .
Axel Zarske: Otocinclus. In: Claus Schaefer, Torsten Schröer (Hrsg.): The large lexicon of aquaristics. 2 volumes. Eugen Ulmer, Stuttgart 2004, ISBN 3-8001-7497-9 , p. 729 f.

Web links

Commons : Ear grated catfish - Collection of images, videos and audio files

[1] www.remowiechert.de

[2] Ear grated catfish on Fishbase.org (English)