Colombian and Venezuelan scientists have described a new species of Hyphessobrycon tetra from the Colombian Amazon.
The new species is named Hyphessobrycon oritoensis (for the type locality, the Orito River in the Putumayo drainage in the Colombian Amazon) by Carlos Garca-Alzate, Csar Romn-Valencia and Donald Taphorn in a recent issue of the journal Zootaxa.
Hyphessobrycon oritoensis belongs to the H. hetrorhabdus group and is distinguished from congeners in the group in having a combination of: iii,8 dorsal"fin rays, iv,26"27 anal"fin rays, 19 teeth on dentary, 35 scales in thelongitudinal series, 10"11 perforated scales in the lateral line, 7 scales between the lateral line and the dorsal"fin origin, 14 predorsal scales and a dark lateral band that extends from the posterior border of the humeral spot to the tips of the middle caudal-fin rays.
The new species is insectivorous and were collected from clear water over a substrate of sand and stone, with low dissolved oxygen (5.2 mg/l), 67% saturation and pH 6.0.
For more information, see the paper: Garca-Alzate, C, C Romn-Valencia and DC Taphorn (2008) Hyphessobrycon oritoensis (Characiformes: Characidae), a new species from the Putumayo River drainage, Colombian Amazon. Zootaxa 1813, pp. 42"50.