Rineloricaria

The Rineloricaria is a genus of Loricariidae with about 65 valid species distributed in the Central America and South America, making them the most diverse genus of this family. They are known as whiptail catfish because of the filament that grows out in caudal fin, it is typical from this genus.

They are characterized by a narrow body, dorsal and ventral rays produced in a filament, abdomen completely covered with platelets and have sexual dimorphism; males have hypertrophied odontodes on the top of head to the predorsal area, on the cheeks and the pectoral-fin rays.

So, this is one more genus we have the transcriptome sequenced and will be used to help us to study the molecular diversity of this large and biodiversity family.

Ancistrus

Ancistrus is a genus of freshwater from the family Loricariidae native to the Neotropical region. This fish has a body covered in bony plates and a ventral suckermouth, as a good Loricariidae. There is a peculiar characteristic associated with this genus: the tentacles located on the head in adult males; females may possess tentacles along the snout margin but they are smaller and they don't have tentacles on the head. They basically feed of phytoplankton and zooplankton, as most of catfishes; and have a special capacity of absorb oxygen from their modified stomach, which allow them to survive in low oxygen conditions.

Now, you known one more cute Loricariidae that is being used in this project to study the molecular biodiversity of this huge family.

A fish? A shark? A cat? Or a dog? Just call me Squali

Knock, knock.

Who is there?

Squaliforma emarginata.

Squali who?

Squaliforma emarginata, a fish of the Loricariidae family. Yes, I have this shark-ish name, but I am indeed a fish, more precisely a catfish. 

OMG, Squalidae is a family of dogfish sharks! What are you?

I am a catfish that looks like a dogfish shark.

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There are around to 13 species of Squaliforma genus, all native from South America. This one was sampled in Manaus, Amazon state, Brazil for our work.

Among the fisherman in Manaus and in portuguese, this fish is known as "bodó de praia", which in a free translation would be "beach suckermouth armoured catfish". The popular name reflect the habit of this to live on sandy beaches along the banks of Solimões river.

The ''bodó de praia'' is trade as ornamental fish.

I hope you enjoyed! 
Bye