Iguanodectes polylepis

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Iguanodectes polylepis
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Characiformes
Family: Iguanodectidae
Genus: Iguanodectes
Species:
I. polylepis
Binomial name
Iguanodectes polylepis
Géry, 1993

Iguanodectes polylepis is a species of freshwater fish from the rivers of South America. Its range is restricted to Brazil, where it inhabits the Madeira and Purus river basins. It is one of the larger members of the genus, but remains generally small, only a little over a quarter-foot long.

Iguanodectes polylepis was named in the same paper that named congeners I. gracilis and I. variatus. None of the three species are particularly well-studied, though I. variatus is more well-known than the other two due to its presence in aquaria, albeit sparse.

Description[edit]

Iguanodectes polylepis is a small fish, measuring a maximum of 8.4 cm (3.3 in) standard length (SL).[1] Nonetheless, it is somewhat large for a species of Iguanodectes, and has the greatest number of lateral line scales therein, 76–81.[2][3] It is narrow-bodied and slender, as with all Iguanodectes, and lacks the prominent chest keel seen in sister genus Piabucus.[4]

Iguanodectes polylepis, as in all Iguanodectes, has a base scale color that ranges from yellow to silver-yellow, and is most similar in coloration to congener Iguanodectes variatus. It has a patch of pigmentation on its caudal fin that occupies a great deal of the junction between lobes, and its lateral stripe is generally dark, with a pinkish band on top.[2] However, it differs from I. variatus in that the snout is not dark, and it has no irregular spots of the kind that give I. variatus its name.[3] Some specimens of I. polylepis bear a patch of orange near the caudal peduncle, and/or an orange dorsal fin. There is no humeral mark.[2]

Taxonomy[edit]

Iguanodectes polylepis has no known synonyms.[5] It is one of the more recent additions to the genus, named in 1993, and is one of three species described in its nominal paper; the other two are Iguanodectes variatus and Iguanodectes gracilis.[2][6] I. polylepis, as with the rest of Iguanodectes, was once considered a member of the family Characidae, but research in 2011 prompted a move to a new family, Iguanodectidae.[7]

Etymology[edit]

The specific epithet "polylepis" means "many-scaled"; "poly" means "multiple", and "lepis" means "scale" (compare Lepidoptera, "scale wing"). This is in reference to its high number of lateral-line scales, the highest in the genus.[3]

Iguanodectes polylepis lacks a common name accepted by the scientific community.[8]

Distribution and ecology[edit]

Iguanodectes polylepis is found in the Madeira and Purus river basins in Brazil.[9][10] It is more well known from the Purus, and was originally thought to be endemic to the basin.[11] The type locality is a tributary of the Rio Ipixuna, specifically a point located to the west of the city Hamaitá, in Amazonas, Brazil.[12]

Little is known of the diet and ecological interactions of I. polylepis. Other members of the genus are usually herbivorous,[4] some with omnivorous traits observed in captivity,[13][14] and it is likely that I. polylepis displays similar habits, especially given its native range. The Purus and Maderia basins are dense with wetlands and flooded forests, establishing plentiful riparian vegetation upon which native fish species can feed.[15][16]

Conservation status[edit]

Iguanodectes polylepis has not been evaluated by the IUCN.[1] It has little presence in aquaria; this is in opposition to congeners known in the industry, such as I. adujai and I. geisleri.[13][14] Iguanodectes is a genus not often imported for trade.[17] Overall, the wide range and the lack of interest in wild-caught specimens of I. polylepis speaks to a generally stable population.

Nonetheless, environmental hazards, especially anthropogenic ones, are an ongoing concern for many aquatic South American species. Threats to the Maderia basin, specifically, include infrastructure development such as hydroelectric dams.[18] The Purus is more threatened by deforestation and agricultural development.[16] Rivers surrounded by farmland are noted to have decreased water quality, including factors like contamination from pesticides and animal feces.[19]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.) (2022). "Iguanodectes polylepis" in FishBase. December 2022 version.
  2. ^ a b c d Géry, J. 1993. "Description de trois espèces nouvelles du genre Iguanodectes (Pisces, Characiformes, Characidae), avec quelques données récentes sur les autres espèces." Revue française d'Aquariologie Herpétologie 19(4): 97-106.
  3. ^ a b c Scharpf, Christopher; Lazara, Kenneth J. (15 September 2020). "Order CHARACIFORMES: Families IGUANODECTIDAE, TRIPORTHEIDAE, BRYCONIDAE, CHALCEIDAE and GASTEROPELECIDAE". The ETYFish Project. Retrieved 12 December 2022.
  4. ^ a b "THE FISH FAMILIES". Field Guide to the Fishes of the Amazon, Orinoco, and Guianas, edited by Peter van der Sleen and James S. Albert, Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2017, pp. 95-96. https://doi.org/10.1515/9781400888801-009
  5. ^ "Iguanodectes polylepis Géry, 1993". gbif.org. Global Biodiversity Information System. Retrieved 12 December 2022.
  6. ^ "WoRMS - World Register of Marine Species - Iguanodectes Cope, 1872". World Register of Marine Species. Retrieved 12 December 2022.
  7. ^ Oliveira, Claudio; Avelino, Gleisy S.; Abe, Kelly T.; Mariguela, Tatiane C.; Benine, Ricardo C.; Ortí, Guillermo; Vari, Richard P.; Corrêa e Castro, Ricardo M. (December 2011). "Phylogenetic relationships within the speciose family Characidae (Teleostei: Ostariophysi: Characiformes) based on multilocus analysis and extensive ingroup sampling". BMC Evolutionary Biology. 11 (1): 275. doi:10.1186/1471-2148-11-275. PMC 3190395. PMID 21943181.
  8. ^ "Iguanodectes polylepis Géry 1993 - Names". Encyclopedia of Life. Retrieved 12 December 2022.
  9. ^ da Silva, Luís R. R. (July 2020). "Delimitação Molecular de Espécies da Família Iguanodectidae (Teleostei, Characiformes)" (PDF). Retrieved 13 December 2022. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  10. ^ Check list of the freshwater fishes of South and Central America. Roberto E. Reis, Sven O. Kullander, Carl J. Ferraris, Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul. Museu de Ciências e Tecnologia. Porto Alegre, Brasil: EDIPUCRS. 2003. ISBN 85-7430-361-5. OCLC 54496178.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  11. ^ Dagosta, Fernando C.P.; Pinna, Mário De (13 June 2019). "The Fishes of the Amazon: Distribution and Biogeographical Patterns, with a Comprehensive List of Species". Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History. 2019 (431): 83. doi:10.1206/0003-0090.431.1.1. S2CID 196645665. Retrieved 9 December 2022.
  12. ^ Buckup, Paulo & Menezes, Naercio & Ghazzi, Miriam. (2007). Catálogo das Espécies de Peixes de Água Doce do Brasil. Retrieved 13 December 2022.
  13. ^ a b "Iguanodectes geisleri (Red Line Lizard Tetra)". Seriously Fish. Retrieved 28 November 2022.
  14. ^ a b "Iguanodectes adujai — Seriously Fish". Seriously Fish. Retrieved 28 November 2022.
  15. ^ Misachi, John (7 September 2021). "Purus River". worldatlas.com. WorldAtlas. Retrieved 13 December 2022.
  16. ^ a b "Madeira". amazonwaters.org. Aguas Amazonicas. Retrieved 13 December 2022.
  17. ^ Schäfer, Frank. "Iguanodectes geisleri". aquariumglaser.de. Aquarium Glaser GmbH. Retrieved 2 December 2022.
  18. ^ Millikan, Brent. "Madeira River". archive.internationalrivers.org. International Rivers Archive. Retrieved 13 December 2022.
  19. ^ Astiz, Simón. (2012). Water resource degradation in the Cataniapo River, Amazons, Venezuela. Tecnologia y Ciencias del Agua. 3. 5-20. Retrieved 11 November 2022.
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