''Hassar'' is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

of thorny catfishes native to

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...

Species

There are currently five recognized species in this genus: * '' Hassar affinis'' (

Steindachner Franz Steindachner (11 November 1834 in Vienna – 10 December 1919 in Vienna) was an Austrian zoologist, ichthyologist, and herpetologist. He published over 200 papers on fishes and over 50 papers on reptiles and amphibians. Steindachner descri ...

, 1881) * '' Hassar gabiru'' Birindelli,

Fayal Faial Island (), also known as Fayal Island, is a Portugal, Portuguese island of the Central Group or ''Grupo Central'' of the Azores, in the Atlantic Ocean. The Capelinhos volcano is the westernmost point of the island and is considered the we ...

& Wosiacki, 2011 * '' Hassar orestis'' (

, 1875) * '' Hassar shewellkeimi'' Sabaj Pérez & Birindelli, 2013Sabaj Pérez, M.H. & Birindelli, J.L.O. (2013): ''Hassar shewellkeimi'', a new species of thorny catfish (Siluriformes: Doradidae) from the upper Tapajós basin, Brazil. ''Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, 162: 133–156.'' * '' Hassar wilderi'' Kindle, 1895

Description

Like other doradids, ''Hassar'' species have a row of scutes on each side of their body, though they are more subdued. ''Hassar'' species grow to approximately 15.7–25.0 centimetres (6.2–9.8 in) SL.

In the aquarium

''Hassar'' species are very rarely imported for the

aquarium An aquarium (: aquariums or aquaria) is a vivarium of any size having at least one transparent side in which aquatic plants or animals are kept and displayed. fishkeeping, Fishkeepers use aquaria to keep fish, invertebrates, amphibians, aquati ...

hobby, and the most commonly imported species is ''H. orestis''. Care of this species is not straightforward; they are hard to acclimate if not in good condition at the point of sale. They are always wild caught. However, once settled in they are easier to care for. These fish should be provided with dense vegetation to feel comfortable. They are not aggressive, though smaller fish are very shy in the presence of larger fish.

References

Doradidae Fish of South America Fish of the Amazon basin Catfish genera Taxa named by Carl H. Eigenmann Taxa named by Rosa Smith Eigenmann Freshwater fish genera {{Doradidae-stub