A new species of pseudopimelodid catfish from the Microglanis genus has been described from northeastern Brazil.
The new catfish has been described as Microglanis pataxo by Sarmento-Soares, Martins-Pinheiro, Aranda and Chamon in a paper in the latest issue of the journal Neotropical Ichthyology.
The catfish was discovered in small rivers in the lower and middle Rio Peruipe, middle Rio Jucurucu and Rio Cahy basins on the southern Bahia coast in northeastern Brazil and, like other members of the Microglanis genus, reaches a size of under 8cm/3" in length.
The authors have described the osteology of the fish, as well as the external morphology, and produced a dichotomous key to the Microglanis species of the coastal drainages between Bahia and Rio de Janeiro state to aid the identification of the fishes.
Microglanis pataxo can be distinguished from other members of the genus by a combination of characters:
"The new species has a comparatively high number of anal fin proximal radials, 12, shaped as thin tubes, the last one bearing a laminar extension; a pectoral fin spine with a bony point and with a smaller number of serrations on its posterior border; seven pleural ribs and a narrow head width."
For more information on the new tropical fish species see the paper: Sarmento-Soares LM, Martins-Pinheiro RF, Aranda AT and CC Chamon (2006) - Microglanis pataxo, a new catfish from southern Bahia coastal rivers, northeastern Brazil (Siluriformes: Pseudopimelodidae). Neotropical Ichthyology, 4(2): 157-166, 2006.