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Scientific Name Scoloplax dicra  Bailey & Baskin, 1976
Common Name
Type Locality Lagoon off Río Iténez, about 400 meters southwest of river opposite Costa Marques (Brazil), Beni Province, Bolivia, 12°28.38'S, 64°16.59'W.
Pronunciation SKOW low plax
Etymology Scoloplax: From the Greek skolos, meaning thorn and plax, meaning plate; in reference to the moveable dermal bone on top of snout (rostral plate) that is studded with large integumentary teeth. The adjectival name dicra meaning forked, cloven, or bifurcate, with reference to the forked maxillary barbel.
Hop to next section Species Information
Size 14mm or 0.6" SL. Find near, nearer or same sized spp.
Identification Species of the neotropical family Scoloplacidae are distinguished from other Siluriformes by the presence of a conspicuous shield-shaped rostral plate bearing numerous large and recurved odontodes. Scoloplacidae is a monogeneric family endemic to South America and known from the Amazon, Paraguay, and Parana basins. The worlds smallest known catfish are from this genus, the smallest is most likely S. dolicholophia.

From the original description: The dorsal and dorsolateral surfaces are light tan, slightly darker on the head, with a few indistinct narrow darker crossbars below and behind the dorsal fin. The midside and ventrolateral surfaces are clarker brown than the back; that color grades into the whitish lower surface, which is broken by scattered brown pigment cells on the belly and by narrow brown crossbars on the lower surface of the caudal peduncle. The fins are light, with indistinct brownish markings; most evident is a dark brown crossband on the caudal base that inclines downward and backward. The barbels are crossbanded with light brown.
Sexing Larger male specimens with large, fleshy tissue at ventral opening. Females without tissue sack.
Hop to next section Habitat Information
Distribution South America: Amazon and Paraguay River basins.
Amazon (click on these areas to find other species found there)
La Plata, Paraná, Paraguay (click on these areas to find other species found there)
Amazon, Upper Amazon, Tarapoto wetlands (click on these areas to find other species found there)

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IUCN Red List Category Least Concern, range map and more is available on the IUCN species page. Last assessed 2020.
Hop to next section Husbandry Information
Furniture Queit probably acid waters with organic trash on the bottom are part of the preferred habitat.
Breeding Unreported in the aquarium.
Breeding Reports There is no breeding report.
Hop to next section Further Information
Reference Occasional Papers of the Museum of Zoology University of Michigan No. 674, pp 7, Figs. 1-3.
Registered Keepers There is no registered keeper.
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Last Update 2020 Oct 11 02:11 (species record created: 2012 Dec 26 21:56)