Scientists have described a new species of pimelodid catfish from the Rio Sao Francisco drainage in Brazil.
Frank Ribeiro and Carlos de Lucena described the new species as Pimelodus pohli in a paper in the latest volume of the journal Neotropical Ichthyology.
Pimelodus pohli was discovered in the Rio Para in the Rio Sao Francisco drainage in Minas Gerais, eastern Brazil, and reaches a size of around 15-20cm/6-8" in length.
The species can be told apart from other members of the Pimelodus genus by the following combination of characters: "adults with dark spots on the anterodorsal region of body and young specimens (up to 100mm SL) with three rows of dark spots laterally on body; comparatively long adipose fin, more than one third of the distance between posterior end of dorsal fin base and the vertical through posterior end of anal-fin base (21.8-26.2% SL); lips poorly developed; 20-25 gill rakers; and maxilliary barbels slightly surpassing the caudal-fin base."
Along with Pimelodus fur and Pimelodus maculatus, it is one of three Pimelodus species found in the Rio Sao Francisco basin.
The fish was named in honour of Johan Emanual Pohl, who worked alongside Johann Natterer on the Austrian Mission to Brazil (1817-1836), which collected in several localities in the Rio Sao Francisco drainage.
The Pimelodus genus contains around 25 species.
For more information see the paper: Ribeiro FRV and CAS de Lucena (2006) - A new species of Pimelodus LaCepede, 1803 (Siluriformes: Pimelodidae) from the Rio Sao Francisco drainage, Brazil. Neotropical Ichthyology, 4(4):411-418, 2006.