Tyttocharax madeirae

Tyttocharax madeirae, the blackedge tetra, also known as the bristly-mouthed tetra or the blue tetra,[2][3] is a small freshwater fish of the family Characidae found in the Amazon basin of South America.[4] It was first caught by Edgar A. Smith in 1912 in Brazil and described by American ichthyologist Henry Weed Fowler in 1913.

Not to be confused with blue tetra.

Tyttocharax madeirae
Tyttocharax madeirae as drawn by Fowler in his original description of the species
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Characiformes
Family: Characidae
Genus: Tyttocharax
Species:
T. madeirae
Binomial name
Tyttocharax madeirae
Fowler, 1913
Synonyms[1]
  • Microcaelurus odontocheilus Miranda Ribeiro, 1939

Unlike many other charcharins, T. madeirae has seen little inclusion into the aquarium trade.[5]

Discovery and naming

Along with other descriptions made by Fowler in 1913, eight specimens of T. madeirae, including the holotype and the paratype, were collected by Edgar A. Smith during a 1912-1913 expedition to the Amazon basin in Brazil along the Madeira River.[4]

In his description, Fowler named the species for the Madeira River.[4]

Distribution

Tyttocharax madeirae has been found in the lower and middle tributaries of the Amazon basin,[3] being found in the nations of Brazil, Bolivia, and Peru.[4][6][7] It is pelagic,[3] and according to observations by Herbert R. Axelrod were found in shallow waters 0.3 to 0.6 meters deep (1 to 2 feet) at most.[2]

In a sampling expedition by Barros et al., T. madeirae accounted for 0.82% of the total 5508 collected specimens and occurred in 13.6% of the sampled streams of the Madeira-Purus interfluvial plain.[8]

Description

Fowler did not describe the colors of a living T. madeirae, however, it was described as palish brown when in alcohol, exhibiting countershading with a paler underside.[4] T. madeirae is considered small, with the average length of the species being 1.5 cm (0.59 inches) and ranging from 1.1 to 1.8 cm (0.43 to 0.71 inches).[4][9]

Ecology

Tyttocharax madeirae is an invertivore, specializing on aquatic invertebrates while also occasionally preying on terrestrial vertebrates which may fall into the water.[9]

References
  1. Reis, Roberto E.; Kullander, Sven O.; Ferraris, Carl J. (2003). Check list of the freshwater fishes of South and Central America. EDIPUCRS. ISBN 85-7430-361-5.
  2. Axelrod, Herbet R.; Emmens, Cliff W.; Burgess, Warren E.; Pronek, Neal (1983). Exotic Tropical Fishes Expanded Edition. T.F.H. Publications. ISBN 0-87666-543-1.
  3. Binohlan, Crispina B. (2008). "Tyttocharax madeirae Fowler, 1913". FishBase.
  4. Henry W. Fowler (1913), "Fishes from the Madeira River, Brazil", Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, Academy of Natural Sciences, 65 (3): 566
  5. Queiroz, Luiz J. de; Torrente-Vilara, Gislene; Vieira, Fabíola G.; Ohara, Ohara; Zuanon, Jansen; Doria, Carolina R. C. (2013), "Fishes of Cuniã Lake, Madeira River Basin, Brazil", CheckList, 9 (3): 540–548, doi:10.15560/9.3.540
  6. "Information on record GBIF197246957". Global Biodiversity Information Facility database. The Polistes Corporation. 21 May 2013. Retrieved 20 April 2022.
  7. "Information on record GBIF472664439". Global Biodiversity Information Facility database. The Polistes Corporation. 21 May 2013. Retrieved 20 April 2022.
  8. Barros, Daniela de França; Zuanon, Jansen; Mendonça, Fernando Pereira de; Espirito Santo, Helder Mateus Viana; Galuch, André Vieira; Albernaz, Ana Luísa Kerti Mangabeira (2011), "The fish fauna of streams in the madeira-purus interfluvial region, Brazilian Amazon", CheckList, 7 (6): 768–773, doi:10.15560/11022
  9. Ibañez, Carla; Tedesco, Pablo A.; Bigorne, Rémy; Hugueny, Bernard; Pouilly, Marc; Zepita, Claudia; Zubieta, José; Oberdoff, Thierry (2007), "Dietary-morphological relationships in fish assemblages of small forested streams in the Bolivian Amazon", Aquatic Living Resources, 20 (2): 131–142, doi:10.1051/alr:2007024, hdl:10256/7795, S2CID 55780428
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