''Chaetostoma spondylus'' is a

freshwater Fresh water or freshwater is any naturally occurring liquid or frozen water containing low concentrations of dissolved salts and other total dissolved solids. Although the term specifically excludes seawater and brackish water, it does include ...

species of catfish in the family Loricariidae and the genus ''

Chaetostoma ''Chaetostoma'', also known as the bristlemouth catfish, is a genus of suckermouth armored catfishes native to South America with one species, '' C. fischeri,'' extending into Panama. Most species inhabit flowing rivers in the lower Andes and it ...

''. It is a

demersal fish Demersal fish, also known as groundfish, live and feed on or near the bottom of seas or lakes (the demersal zone).Walrond Carl . "Coastal fish - Fish of the open sea floor"Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand. Updated 2 March 2009 They occ ...

with a

pH range In chemistry, pH (), historically denoting "potential of hydrogen" (or "power of hydrogen"), is a scale used to specify the acidity or basicity of an aqueous solution. Acidic solutions (solutions with higher concentrations of ions) are ...

of about 6–7.1. It is native to South America, where it occurs in the Chotano River, the Huancabamba River, the Sendamal River, and the Utcubamba, which are mountain tributaries of the Marañón River located at around 1500 to 2000 meters (4921 to 6562 ft) above sea level. These rivers are, by extension, part of the

Amazon River The Amazon River (, ; es, Río Amazonas, pt, Rio Amazonas) in South America is the largest river by discharge volume of water in the world, and the disputed longest river system in the world in comparison to the Nile. The headwaters of t ...

basin in Peru. The species is typically found in streams and rapids with a high gradient, specifically in areas with a boulder substrate. It reaches 13.1 cm (5.2 inches) SL. ''C. spondylus'' is thought to prefer temperatures of 23 to 27 °C (73 to 80 °F).

References

spondylus Fish described in 2015 {{Hypostominae-stub