Metadata

Phreatobius undescribed species Aripuana

[Muriel-Cunha 2008]

ORDERSUB-ORDERFAMILY
SiluriformesSiluroideiPhreatobiidae

Note

Muriel-Cunha (2008:118) says of this taxon: "Phreatobíus sp. ”Aripuanä”. A single specimen of this species was collected in a hyporeic environment, in leaf litter on the lake inside the island of Mamäo, Aripuanä river. The specimen has a distinctive character from the other species: extremely long dorsal fin, extending practically to the end of the body. Despite this conspicuous character, the intra-morphological variation observed in Phreatobíus is quite high. Because it is not possible to evaluate the variation of that and other characters it is not posssible to diagnosis this species. As soon as more material is available, the description of this species will be led by De Pinna and Rapp Py-Daniel. Lot: 25126 (S 6 °8'48 ”, O 60 ° 11'5O"). Collected by L. Rapp Py-Daniel et al.

Synonyms

None.

Previously subsumed within one of the three formally known species.

Country

Brasil

Types

This taxon has not been formally described and there are currently no types.

Habitat

Hyporheic.

Systematics

A detailed molecular study of the genus Phreatobius, in a Ph.D. thesis, by Janice Muriel-Cunha (Muriel-Cunha 2008) demonstrated that there are at least eight species within the genus Phreatobius and also that the genus resides in its own monogeneric Family, Phreatobiidae (see also Muriel-Cunha and De Pinna 2005, Shibatta, Muriel-Cunha and de Pinna 2007, Muriel-Cunha, De Pinna, M. and Zuanon 2008Muriel-Cunha and de Pinna 2008Sullivan, Muriel-Cunha and Lundberg 2013). In addition to the three formally described species (P. cisternarum, P. dracunculus and P. sanguijuela) are five which received informal names in the thesis of Muriel-Cunha ( P. undescribed species Anapixi, P. undescribed species Jaú, P. undescribed species Tarumanzinho, P. undescribed species Viruá and P. undescribed species Aripuana). Even though it is now 12 years since these informally named taxa were demonstrated to be good species, at least genetically, they have not yet been formally described.

Conservation Status

MuG [NE]

Key References

Muriel-Cunha, J. Thesis 2008 Biodiversidade e sistematica molecular de Phreatobiidae (stariophysi: Siluriformes) - com una proposta sobre sua posicao filogenetica em Siluriformes e uma discussao sobre a evolucao do habito subterraneo
Mariluz, B.R. Thesis 2019 A base molecular das adaptações visuais nos genes das opsinas de anableps Anableps e Phreatobius cisternarum através da análise de transcriptoma
Perez, L.N., Mariluz, B.R., Lorena, J., Liu, A., Sousa, M.P., Martins, R.A.P., Taylor, J.S. and Schneider, P.N. Journal Article 2021 The subterranean catfish Phreatobius cisternarum provides insights into visual adaptations to the phreatic environment