''Chaetostoma sovichthys'' is a
freshwater
Fresh water or freshwater is any naturally occurring liquid or frozen water containing low concentrations of dissolved salts and other total dissolved solids. Although the term specifically excludes seawater and brackish water, it does include ...
species of
catfish in the family
Loricariidae and the
genus ''
Chaetostoma
''Chaetostoma'', also known as the bristlemouth catfish, is a genus of suckermouth armored catfishes native to South America with one species, '' C. fischeri,'' extending into Panama. Most species inhabit flowing rivers in the lower Andes and it ...
''. It is a
demersal
The demersal zone is the part of the sea or ocean (or deep lake) consisting of the part of the water column near to (and significantly affected by) the seabed and the benthos. The demersal zone is just above the benthic zone and forms a layer of ...
fish native to
tropical South America, where it occurs in the basins of the
Motatán River and
Lake Maracaibo
Lake Maracaibo (Spanish: Lago de Maracaibo; Anu: Coquivacoa) is a lagoon in northwestern Venezuela, the largest lake in South America and one of the oldest on Earth, formed 36 million years ago in the Andes Mountains. The fault in the northern se ...
in
Venezuela. It reaches 7.2 cm (2.8 inches) SL.
The species reportedly prefers a
pH of 6.0 to 7.0 and a temperature of 23 to 27 °C (73 to 80 °F).
References
sovichthys
Fish described in 1944
{{Hypostominae-stub