''Pseudacanthicus'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial n ...

of medium to large-sized suckermouth armored catfishes native to South America, where found in the

Amazon Amazon most often refers to: * Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek mythology * Amazon rainforest, a rainforest covering most of the Amazon basin * Amazon River, in South America * Amazon (company), an American multinational technolog ...

and

Orinoco The Orinoco () is one of the longest rivers in South America at . Its drainage basin, sometimes known as the Orinoquia, covers , with 76.3 percent of it in Venezuela and the remainder in Colombia. It is the fourth largest river in the wo ...

basins, as well as rivers of the

Guianas The Guianas, sometimes called by the Spanish loan-word ''Guayanas'' (''Las Guayanas''), is a region in north-eastern South America which includes the following three territories: * French Guiana, an overseas department and region of France * ...

. They are primarily found in fast-flowing waters, sometimes relatively deep. They are sometimes kept in aquariums.

Species

There are currently 8 recognized species in this genus: * ''

Pseudacanthicus fordii ''Pseudacanthicus fordii'' is a species of armored catfish endemic to Suriname Suriname (; srn, Sranankondre or ), officially the Republic of Suriname ( nl, Republiek Suriname , srn, Ripolik fu Sranan), is a country on the northeastern A ...

'' ( Günther, 1868) * ''

Pseudacanthicus histrix ''Pseudacanthicus histrix'' is a large species of armored catfish endemic to Brazil where it occurs in the Rio Negro and lower Amazon basins. This species grows to a total length of . ''P. histrix'' has incredibly elongated odontodes that for ...

'' (

Valenciennes Valenciennes (, also , , ; nl, label=also Dutch, Valencijn; pcd, Valincyinnes or ; la, Valentianae) is a commune in the Nord department, Hauts-de-France, France. It lies on the Scheldt () river. Although the city and region experienced a ...

, 1840) * ''

Pseudacanthicus leopardus ''Pseudacanthicus leopardus'' is a species of armored catfish endemic to Guyana Guyana ( or ), officially the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern mainland of South America. Guyana is an indigenous word which mean ...

'' ( Fowler, 1914) * ''

Pseudacanthicus major ''Pseudacanthicus major'' is a species of catfish in the family Loricariidae. It is native to South America, where it occurs in the Tocantins River basin in Brazil. The species is notably large for a loricariid, reaching 60 cm (23.6 inches) SL.C ...

'' Chamon & Costa e Silva, 2018Chamon, Carine C. ; and Thiago Costa e Silva (2018). Pseudacanthicus major: Description of One of the Largest Known Loricariidae (Hypostominae: Ancistrini), A Species from rio Tocantins Basin, Brazil. Zootaxa. 4387(3); 499–510. * ''

Pseudacanthicus pirarara ''Pseudacanthicus pirarara'' is a species of catfish in the family Loricariidae native to South America. It was described in 2016 by Carine C. Chamon of the Federal University of Tocantins and Leandro M. de Sousa of the Federal University of Par� ...

'' Chamon & L. M. de Sousa, 2016Chamon, C.C. & Sousa, L.M. (2016): A new species of the leopard pleco genus ''Pseudacanthicus'' (Siluriformes: Loricariidae) from the Rio Xingu, Brazil. ''Journal of Fish Biology, 90 (1): 356-369.'' * ''

Pseudacanthicus pitanga ''Pseudacanthicus pitanga'' is a species of catfish in the family Loricariidae. It is native to South America, where it occurs in the Tocantins River basin in Brazil. The species reaches 30 cm (11.8 inches) SL. It was described in 2015 by Carine ...

'' Chamon, 2015Chamon, C.C. (2015)
''Pseudacanthicus pitanga'': a new species of Ancistrini (Siluriformes: Loricariidae: Hypostominae) from rio Tocantins Basin, North Brazil.
''Zootaxa, 3973 (2): 309–319.'' * ''

Pseudacanthicus serratus ''Pseudacanthicus serratus'' is a species of armored catfish native to French Guiana and Suriname Suriname (; srn, Sranankondre or ), officially the Republic of Suriname ( nl, Republiek Suriname , srn, Ripolik fu Sranan), is a country on ...

'' (

, 1840) * ''

Pseudacanthicus spinosus ''Pseudacanthicus spinosus'' is a species of armored catfish endemic to Brazil where it occurs in the Amazon Basin The Amazon basin is the part of South America drained by the Amazon River and its tributaries. The Amazon drainage basin cov ...

'' ( Castelnau, 1855) Some of these were only recently described and

undescribed species In taxonomy, an undescribed taxon is a taxon (for example, a species) that has been discovered, but not yet formally described and named. The various Nomenclature Codes specify the requirements for a new taxon to be validly described and name ...

probably remain. In contrast, ''P. fordii'' is likely a

synonym A synonym is a word, morpheme, or phrase that means exactly or nearly the same as another word, morpheme, or phrase in a given language. For example, in the English language, the words ''begin'', ''start'', ''commence'', and ''initiate'' are al ...

of ''P. serratus'', and ''P. histrix'' likely a synonym of ''P. spinosus''.

Description

Species of ''Pseudacanthicus'' are medium to large spiny

loricariid The Loricariidae is the largest family (biology), family of catfish (order Siluriformes), with 92 genus, genera and just over 680 species. Loricariids originate from freshwater habitats of Costa Rica, Panama, and tropical and subtropical South Am ...

s, up to in

standard length Fish measurement is the measuring of individual fish and various parts of their anatomies. These data are used in many areas of ichthyology, including taxonomy and fisheries biology. Overall length * Standard length (SL) is the length of a fish ...

. They have a diverse range of colour patterns, typically light to dark grey or brown, often with black spots, which may result in a netted appearance. The fins and body may have orange-red sections or a red wash. Colouration varies between rivers and can also change throughout the lifetime of a single individual. The abdomen is covered in small plates in adults. The

caudal fin Fins are distinctive anatomical features composed of bony spines or rays protruding from the body of a fish. They are covered with skin and joined together either in a webbed fashion, as seen in most bony fish, or similar to a flipper, as s ...

is forked and may have filaments. The jaws are short, forming an acute angle at their union; the teeth are few and stout. The

adipose fin Fins are distinctive anatomical features composed of bony spines or rays protruding from the body of a fish. They are covered with skin and joined together either in a webbed fashion, as seen in most bony fish, or similar to a flipper, as s ...

is present.

Conservation

Some of the species in the genus are threatened by mining, deforestation and especially the building of dams. Like many other

s, ''Pseudacanthicus'' are found in flowing waters with high levels of oxygen and dams typically flood these, transforming them to reservoirs. In some regions where dams have been built, the local populations of ''Pseudacanthicus'' have seriously decreased or even disappeared. In contrast, although some species often are caught for the aquarium trade, this does not appear to represent a serious threat to them.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q935748 Ancistrini Fish of South America Fish of Brazil Fish of Guyana Fish of Suriname Catfish genera Taxa named by Pieter Bleeker Freshwater fish genera