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Scientific Name Hypophthalmus fimbriatus  Kner, 1858
Common Name Dolphin Catfish
Type Locality Rio Negro, South America.
Pronunciation hi pop thal muss
Etymology (Greek)Hypo=Under + (Greek)opthalmos=eye. 
Hop to next section Species Information
Identification Hypophthalmus fimbriatus is quite distinct from its congeners because of its greatly elongate, flat and thick mental barbels. No other known catfish species has as large mental barbels, relative to body length. It also has a deeply forked caudal fin.
Sexing Unknown.
General Remarks It has been hypothesized that the large barbels are sensory organs that, when projected forward, allow the fish to 'feel' about olfactorily, and perhaps electrically, for Zooplankton concentrations. Once Zooplankton concentrations are found, they are sucked in and the larger cladocerans are sieved out by the gillrakers.
Hop to next section Habitat Information
Distribution South America: Santarém and the Negro River basin.
Amazon, Lower Amazon (click on these areas to find other species found there)
Amazon, Middle Amazon (Solimoes), Negro (click on these areas to find other species found there)

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IUCN Red List Category Not Evaluated
Hop to next section Husbandry Information
Feeding Studies show H. fimbriatus is mostly zooplanktivorous, and that cladocerans (water fleas) are the principal zooplankton eaten. It is believed that H. fimbriatus is a filter feeder through the sieving action of its gillrakers. User data.
Breeding Unreported in the aquarium.
Breeding Reports There is no breeding report.
Hop to next section Further Information
Reference Sitzungsberichte der Kaiserlichen Akademie der Wissenschaften. Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Classe v. 26 (s. 373), pp 444 [74], Pl. 9 (fig. 30).
Registered Keepers There is no registered keeper.
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Last Update 2020 Oct 28 15:30 (species record created: 2001 Nov 05 00:00)