Rineloricaria

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

iRineloricaria
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Actinopterygii Order: Siluriformes Family: Loricariidae Genus: Rineloricaria Bleeker 1862
Species
R. aff. latirostris R. beni R. caracasensis R. catamarcensis R. cf. lanceolata R. cf. parva R. cf. platyura R. eigenmanni R. fallax R. hasemani R. lanceolata R. latirostris R. melini R. morrowi R. parva R. sp. `pantanal` R. sp. `peru` R. sp. (L010a) R. stewarti R. teffeana

Rineloricaria(from the Greek, "rhinos" meaning nose, and the Latin, "lorica" meaning cuirass of leather. Rineloricaria is a genus of freshwater tropical catfish belonging to the Loricariidae family. They are native to the rivers of Northern and Central South America but are imported to other countries as household aquarium pets.

The average length of a Rineloricaria catfish is about 13 cm (5 in) long. The fish are long, slender, have no visible barbels, an erect dorsal fin, a very thin caudal peduncle, and a narrow face. Coloration of the fishes are usually light brown with darker blotches, and have a dark dorsal fin. They are commonly called Whiptail Catfish because of the long filament that grows out of the tip of the caudal fin that is characteristic to their genus. They are also covered with bony plates and have a sucker disk mouth, as is common with most fish in the Loricariidae family.