Iheringichthys

Iheringichthys is a small genus of long-whiskered catfish native to South America.

Iheringichthys
Iheringichthys labrosus from Rio Uruguay
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Actinopterygii
Order:	Siluriformes
Family:	Pimelodidae
Genus:	Iheringichthys Eigenmann & Norris, 1900
Type species
Pimelodus labrosus Lütken, 1874

Species

There are currently three recognized species in this genus:^[1][2]

• Iheringichthys labrosus (Lütken, 1874)
• Iheringichthys megalops Eigenmann & Ward, 1907
• Iheringichthys syi Azpelicueta & Britski, 2012^[2]

Distribution

All species of Iheringichthys are distributed in the Paraná River basin.^[2][3][4]

Appearance and anatomy

Iheringichthys species have a narrow, small mouth positioned to point downwards.^[5]

Ecology

I. labrosus has been studied to feed off of the bottom, mainly at dawn and during daytime hours. Main items in the diet of I. labrosus are aquatic insects (mainly Chironomidae) and mollusks (mainly Bivalvia).^[5] Studies on I. labrosus demonstrates that this species is non-migratory and does not exhibit any parental care.^[6] These fish reproduce all year, with spawning peaking from February to May.^[6]

Relationship to humans

I. labrosus is a secondary commercial fish species in the Itaipu Reservoir. With the end of the trophic upsurge period in the Itaipu Reservoir, secondary species may become important resources for the commercial fishery, including I. labrosus. It is an important fish species in other reservoirs of the basin, especially Promissão and Água Vermelha Reservoirs. It is also an important sport fish in the sand beaches (“mandizeiros”) fishery along the upper Paraná River channel and main tributaries.^[5]

References

1. Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.). "Species in genus Iheringichthys". FishBase. February 2012 version.
2. Azpelicueta, M.d.l.M. & Britski, H.A. (2012): Iheringichthys syi (Siluriformes: Pimelodidae), a new pimelodid species from upper Paraná basin, Brazil. Archived 2012-05-13 at the Wayback Machine Neotropical Ichthyology, 10 (1): 45-52.
3. Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.). "Iheringichthys labrosus". FishBase. June 2007 version.
4. Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.). "Iheringichthys megalops". FishBase. June 2007 version.
5. Abes, Sara da Silva; Agostinho, Angelo Antonio; Okada, Edson Kiyoshi; Gomes, Luiz Carlos (March 2001). "Diet of Iheringichthys labrosus (Pimelodidae, Siluriformes) in the Itaipu Reservoir, Paraná River, Brazil-Paraguay" (PDF). Brazilian Archives of Biology and Technology. 44 (1): 101–105. doi:10.1590/S1516-89132001000100014.
6. Santos, José Enemir dos; Bazzoli, Nilo; Rizzo, Elizete; Santos, Gilmar Bastos (2004). "Reproduction of the catfish Iheringichthys labrosus (Lütken) in Furnas reservoir, Minas Gerais, Brazil" (PDF). Revista Brasileira de Zoologia. 21 (2): 193–200. doi:10.1590/S0101-81752004000200006.