''Spatuloricaria'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

of armored catfishes native to

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 southe ...

and

Panama Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Cos ...

. ''Spatuloricaria'' is in need of revision, as species boundaries and distributions are poorly known. The

phylogenetic In biology, phylogenetics (; from Greek φυλή/ φῦλον [] "tribe, clan, race", and wikt:γενετικός, γενετικός [] "origin, source, birth") is the study of the evolutionary history and relationships among or within groups o ...

position of ''Spatuloricaria'' remains uncertain. ''Spatuloricaria'' has been placed at the base of a

clade A clade (), also known as a monophyletic group or natural group, is a group of organisms that are monophyletic – that is, composed of a common ancestor and all its lineal descendants – on a phylogenetic tree. Rather than the English term, ...

including representatives of the ''

Loricaria ''Loricaria'' is a genus of armored catfish native to South America. Taxonomy ''Loricaria'' was the first genus of the family Loricariidae described. Thus, it is the nominal genus of the family Loricariidae. Phylogenetic relationships within ' ...

'' and ''

Pseudohemiodon ''Pseudohemiodon'' is a genus of armored catfishes native to South America. Species There are currently seven recognized species in this genus: * '' Pseudohemiodon amazonus'' ( Delsman, 1941) * '' Pseudohemiodon apithanos'' Isbrücker & Nijss ...

'' groups. Its dentition, with few teeth on the

premaxilla The premaxilla (or praemaxilla) is one of a pair of small cranial bones at the very tip of the upper jaw of many animals, usually, but not always, bearing teeth. In humans, they are fused with the maxilla. The "premaxilla" of therian mammal has b ...

e, and its abdominal cover consisting of minute disjointed platelets resembles that of some representatives of the ''Loricaria'' group. Conversely, the

papillose This glossary of botanical terms is a list of definitions of terms and concepts relevant to botany and plants in general. Terms of plant morphology are included here as well as at the more specific Glossary of plant morphology and Glossary o ...

surface of the lips and sexually dimorphic features are more characteristic of the ''

Rineloricaria ''Rineloricaria'' (from the Greek, ''rhinos'' meaning ''nose'', and the Latin, ''lorica'' meaning ''cuirass of leather'') is a genus of freshwater tropical catfish ( order Siluriformes) belonging to the family Loricariidae. They are commonly call ...

'' group. This genus is distributed in the northwestern part of the

n subcontinent, in drainages of the Pacific and

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe an ...

Slopes of the

Andes The Andes, Andes Mountains or Andean Mountains (; ) are the longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range is long, wide (widest between 18°S – 20°S ...

. Several species occur also in the upper

Amazon River The Amazon River (, ; es, Río Amazonas, pt, Rio Amazonas) in South America is the largest river by discharge volume of water in the world, and the disputed longest river system in the world in comparison to the Nile. The headwaters of t ...

basin, upper

Paraguay Paraguay (; ), officially the Republic of Paraguay ( es, República del Paraguay, links=no; gn, Tavakuairetã Paraguái, links=si), is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to th ...

, and

São Francisco River The São Francisco River (, ) is a large river in Brazil. With a length of , it is the longest river that runs entirely in Brazilian territory, and the fourth longest in South America and overall in Brazil (after the Amazon, the Paraná and t ...

basins. Sexual dimorphism includes hypertrophied development of claw-like odontodes along the sides of the head and on the pectoral spines in mature males. Ecological data is unavailable and reproductive biology is unknown for ''Spatuloricaria'' species.

Species

There are currently 13 recognized species in this genus: * ''

Spatuloricaria atratoensis ''Spatuloricaria atratoensis'' is a species of catfish in the family Loricariidae. It is native to South America, where it occurs in the Atrato River basin in Colombia. The species reaches 34 cm (13.4 inches) in standard length Fish measurement i ...

'' L. P. Schultz, 1944 * ''

Spatuloricaria caquetae ''Spatuloricaria caquetae'', sometimes known as the longtail pleco, is a species of catfish in the family Loricariidae. It is native to South America, where it occurs in the Orteguaza River basin in Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the ...

'' Fowler, 1943 * ''

Spatuloricaria curvispina ''Spatuloricaria curvispina'' is a species of catfish in the family Loricariidae. It is native to South America, where it occurs in the Magdalena River basin in Colombia. The species reaches 40 cm (15.7 inches) in standard length Fish measurement ...

'' Dahl, 1942 * ''

Spatuloricaria euacanthagenys ''Spatuloricaria euacanthagenys'', sometimes known as the longtail pleco, is a species of catfish in the family Loricariidae. It is native to South America, where it occurs in the Japurá River basin in Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officiall ...

'' Isbrücker, 1979 * ''

Spatuloricaria evansii ''Spatuloricaria evansii'' is a species of catfish in the family Loricariidae. It is native to South America, where it occurs in the basins of the Beni River and the Paraguay River in Argentina, Bolivia, and Brazil. The species reaches 28.2 cm (11 ...

Boulenger Boulenger is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Benjamin Boulenger (born 1990), French footballer * Edward George Boulenger (1888–1946), British zoologist, director of aquarium at London Zoo * George Albert Boulenger (1858–1 ...

, 1892 * '' Spatuloricaria fimbriata'' C. H. Eigenmann & Vance, 1912 * ''

Spatuloricaria gymnogaster ''Spatuloricaria gymnogaster'' is a species of catfish in the family Loricariidae. It is native to South America, where it occurs in the upper Magdalena River basin in Colombia. FishBase records a maximum standard length Fish measurement is th ...

'' C. H. Eigenmann & Vance, 1912 * ''

Spatuloricaria lagoichthys ''Spatuloricaria lagoichthys'' is a species of catfish in the family Loricariidae. It is native to South America, where it occurs in the Lake Maracaibo basin in Venezuela. The species reaches 30.6 cm (12 inches) in standard length Fish measu ...

'' L. P. Schultz, 1944 * '' Spatuloricaria nudiventris''

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 s ...

, 1840 * ''

Spatuloricaria phelpsi ''Spatuloricaria phelpsi'' is a species of catfish in the family Loricariidae. It is native to South America, where it occurs in the Lake Maracaibo basin in Venezuela, with its type locality reportedly being the Socuy River. The species reaches 3 ...

'' L. P. Schultz, 1944 * ''

Spatuloricaria puganensis ''Spatuloricaria puganensis'', sometimes known as the longtail pleco, is a species of catfish in the family Loricariidae. It is native to South America, where it occurs in the Marañón River basin in Peru , image_flag = Flag of ...

'' N. E. Pearson, 1937 * '' Spatuloricaria terracanticum'' Londoño-Burbano, Urbano-Bonilla, Rojas-Molina, Ramírez-Gil & Prada-Pedreros, 2018 * '' Spatuloricaria tuira'' Fichberg, O. T. Oyakawa & de Pinna, 2014 (Tuira's whiptail) Fichberg, I., Oyakawa, O.T. & de Pinna, M. (2014): The End of an Almost 70-Year Wait: A New Species of Spatuloricaria (Siluriformes: Loricariidae) from the Rio Xingu and Rio Tapajós Basins. ''Copeia, 2014 (2): 317-324''.

References

Loricariini Fish of South America Fish of the Amazon basin Catfish genera Taxa named by Leonard Peter Schultz Freshwater fish genera {{Paraguay-stub