''Rhinelepis'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the sout ...

n armored catfish.

Species

There are currently two recognized species in this genus: * '' Rhinelepis aspera''

Spix Johann Baptist Ritter von Spix (9 February 1781 – 13 March 1826) was a German biologist. From his expedition to Brazil, he brought to Germany a large variety of specimens of plants, insects, mammals, birds, amphibians and fish. They constitute ...

& Agassiz, 1829 * '' Rhinelepis strigosa''

Valenciennes Valenciennes (, also , , ; nl, label=also Dutch, Valencijn; pcd, Valincyinnes or ; la, Valentianae) is a commune in the Nord department, Hauts-de-France, France. It lies on the Scheldt () river. Although the city and region experienced a ...

, 1840

Appearance and anatomy

''Rhinelepis'' species are large and heavily plated, though the plates on the abdomen (belly) develop later than in ''

Pseudorinelepis ''Pseudorinelepis genibarbis'' is a species of armored catfish native to Brazil, Peru and Ecuador where it is found in the Amazon basin. Taxonomy ''Pseudorinelepis'' is one of three genera contained in the tribe Rhinelepini, one of the tribes ...

''. They are generally charcoal gray without any markings. The head is long and fat. The

fins A fin is a thin component or appendage attached to a larger body or structure. Fins typically function as foils that produce lift or thrust, or provide the ability to steer or stabilize motion while traveling in water, air, or other fluids. Fin ...

are short and the

adipose fin Fins are distinctive anatomical features composed of bony spines or rays protruding from the body of a fish. They are covered with skin and joined together either in a webbed fashion, as seen in most bony fish, or similar to a flipper, as se ...

is entirely absent. The

gill A gill () is a respiratory organ that many aquatic organisms use to extract dissolved oxygen from water and to excrete carbon dioxide. The gills of some species, such as hermit crabs, have adapted to allow respiration on land provided they are ...

opening is much larger than that of most loricariids. The cheeks lack elongate

odontode Odontodes, or dermal teeth, are hard structures found on the external surfaces of animals or near internal openings. They consist of a soft pulp surrounded by dentine and covered by a mineralized substance such as enamel, a structure similar to th ...

References

Hypostominae Fish of South America Catfish genera Taxa named by Louis Agassiz {{Loricariidae-stub