Hoplosternum punctatum • Callichthyidae • Cat-eLog

Female
Eggs
Two week old
One day old
Juvenile with parent

Cat-eLog Data Sheet
Scientific Name	**Hoplosternum punctatum** Meek & Hildebrand, 1916
Common Name	Spotted Hoplo
Type Locality	Río Marte Arnade, 6 mi. east of Panama City, Panama.
Pronunciation	hop low STERN um
Etymology	Hoplosternum: From the Greek hoplon, meaning shield and sternum, meaning breast; in reference to the prominent coracoid bones on the breast.
Articles	- CotM 2020 August
Species Information
Size	77mm or 3" SL. Find near, nearer or same sized spp.
Identification	Hoplosternum punctatum and Dianema longibarbis are sometimes confused. Hoplosternum punctatum has smaller eyes. In adults the difference in bodyshape and armour is easier to spot; the pectoral shields in Hoplosternum punctatum do not touch in the center (females) or overlap (males), but in Dianema these are closely placed together. The simplest way to tell them apart is to look at the length of the dorsal fin spine. In Hoplosternum it is about half the length of the first soft ray. In Dianema the dorsal fin spine is about the same length as the first soft ray.
Sexing	In Dianema, Hoplosternum and Megalechis (but not in Callichthys), medial expansions of the coracoid bones are especially developed, covering most of the skin between the pectoral fins and sometimes overlapping in the midline in fully developed mature males (vs. not fully covering the abdominal skin and not overlapping in females). Mature males of Callichthys, Dianema, Hoplosternum, Lepthoplosternum, and Megalechis have a thick adipose body on the ventral surface of the pectoral fin. Mature females of Dianema, Hoplosternum and Megalechis have a small fold of skin on the external face of the leading pelvic-fin ray.
Habitat Information
Distribution	Central and South America: Pacific coastal drainages of Panama and in the Atrato River basin in Colombia. Colombia Caribbean Rivers, Atrato (click on these areas to find other species found there) Log in to view data on a map.
IUCN Red List Category	Near Threatened, range map and more is available on the IUCN species page. Last assessed 2019.
Husbandry Information
Breeding	Unreported.
Breeding Reports	There is but a single breeding report, read it here.
Further Information
Reference	Field Museum of Natural History, Publications, Zoölogical Series v. 10 (no. 15), pp 264, Pls. 14-15.
Registered Keepers	Keeping this species? Why not . There are 17 registered keepers, view all "my cats" data.
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Spotters	Spotted this species somewhere? Click the binoculars! There are 8 records of this fish being seen, view them all.
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	Look up Hoplosternum punctatum on Global Biodiversity Information Facility
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Last Update	2019 Sep 26 08:56 (species record created: 2003 Jun 21 00:00)