What sucker is this? Bought as a L27 super teles-Pires pleco

Kenneth tinnesen · Post by **Kenneth tinnesen** » 10 Nov 2007, 20:15

Hi Planet catfish.
My LFS has got this cat for sale, they bouht it as a L27 Panaque super Teles-Pires, but im quite sure its not a panaque, and definetly not a P. nigrolineatus.

Can anyone help me out on this one?
It is about 27-30 cm. long (10-12 inches)

The fish is more dark, than the pics show, and the dots are almost golden or copper, a quite impressive fish, but i would like to get, at least, a genus name for this fish before i buy it. It has to be in the ray tank, so i need to know if its a "safe" species:-)

At first i thougt i could be Glyptoperichtys sp. (gibbiceps or some other species), but its mouth doesnt look as the gibbiceps ive seen, and the fin on his back doesnt look like a "regular" gibbiceps.

Pic 1:
http://www.creatureheaven.dk/potamotrygon/catfish1.JPG

Pic 2:
http://www.creatureheaven.dk/potamotrygon/catfish2.JPG

Pic 3:
http://www.creatureheaven.dk/potamotrygon/catfish3.JPG

Pic 4:
http://www.creatureheaven.dk/potamotrygon/catfish4.JPG

Hoping to hear from you soon. Any help is aprecietad very much.

Regards
Kenneth Tinnesen
Denmark

husky_jim · Post by **husky_jim** » 10 Nov 2007, 22:32

It is indeed a Pterygoplichthys sp. If you paid a lot for it just return it and claim your money.

Despite that the fish has a beautiful pattern...

Post by **Janne** » 10 Nov 2007, 22:47

Kenneth,

Can you try to get more information about this species if it's caught in Teles pires or if that just are a name?
It looks similare to Pterygoplichthys xinguensis but if so it would come from that river or the tributaries to Rio Xingu.

Janne

Post by **Silurus** » 10 Nov 2007, 22:49

I think that this may be Hypostomus chrysostiktos (a newly described species with 10-11 dorsal-fin rays), rather than Pterygoplichthys.

Kenneth tinnesen · Post by **Kenneth tinnesen** » 10 Nov 2007, 23:19

Hi
Thanks for the quick replys
I didnt buy it, simply because i ordered a large Panaque nigrolineatus, which this one deffinetly isnt:-) But since i couldnt get either of those (they send this one instead of the panaque) i bought a nice L014 subadult animal instead.

Im sorry, but its not possible to get other information on the specific point where they caught it. But since they call it Super royal Teles Pires, i think thats its the point where its caught, but, as seen before, the cathchers in SA dont allways tell the truth about where the animals are caught..

Thanks for the help so far, i will try to get some more info on the names you have given me.

Regards from Denmark
Kenneth Tinnesen

drpleco · Post by **drpleco** » 10 Nov 2007, 23:52

How many hard rays for an L001? I counted 13 on this fish - right? Could this just be a very large L001?

Kenneth tinnesen · Post by **Kenneth tinnesen** » 10 Nov 2007, 23:56

Hi DrGold
I also thought, that it simply was a large specimen of the P. joselimaianus, but i never saw this species in that size. The hard rays on the fin deffinetly fits, 13 on both fish. (I havent look for photos of the other 2 species mentioned earlier)

Regards
Kenneth

Post by **Janne** » 11 Nov 2007, 00:02

At the first pic we can count at least 12 soft dorsal fin rays + 1 hard so that would rule out the new Hypostomus chrysostiktos and make it to a Pterygoplichthys species.

P. xinguensis and P. joselimaianus is very similare to each other but one difference is the pattern on their stomach, and your fishes stomach looks like they do on P. xinguensis.

Janne

Post by **Silurus** » 11 Nov 2007, 00:24

I counted 11 branched dorsal-fin rays. The last two rays appear to be fused at the base, making them a single ray.

Post by **Janne** » 11 Nov 2007, 16:31

The pic of P. xinguensis is from http://silurus.acnatsci.org/ACSI/field/Axce2004/

Janne

Kenneth tinnesen · Post by **Kenneth tinnesen** » 11 Nov 2007, 18:05

Hi
Thanks very much for the replys! the fish looks just like the P. xinguensis in the last reply. I think, that its quite sure, that thats the one, or deffinetly some other, very simmilar Pterogoplichtys species.

Regards
Kenneth Tinnesen

taksan · Post by **taksan** » 18 Nov 2007, 07:22

Looks like your plain average adult L001 to me.
Who said they never grow that size? Every single adult one I've had has grown at least that big or bigger.