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The threadfin acara (''Acarichthys heckelii''), also known as Heckel's thread-finned acara, is a
This is a laterally-compressed, deep-bodied fish with a brownish-silver upper body, silvery flanks and a pale belly. There is a vertical black streak below the eye, a black blotch on the front few rays of the dorsal fin and a small black spot on the flanks below the centre of the dorsal fin.
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 ...
n species of cichlid
Cichlids are fish from the family Cichlidae in the order Cichliformes. Cichlids were traditionally classed in a suborder, the Labroidei, along with the wrasses ( Labridae), in the order Perciformes, but molecular studies have contradicted this ...
fish. It is the only member of the genus ''Acarichthys'' and is native to rivers in the Amazon
Amazon most often refers to:
* Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek mythology
* Amazon rainforest, a rainforest covering most of the Amazon basin
* Amazon River, in South America
* Amazon (company), an American multinational technology c ...
and Essequibo Essequibo is the largest traditional region of Guyana but not an administrative region of Guyana today. It may also refer to:
* Essequibo River, the largest river in Guyana
* Essequibo (colony), a former Dutch colony in what is now Guyana;
* Esseq ...
basins in tropical South America, and has become established in southeastern Asia. It is sometimes found in the aquarium trade.
Taxonomy and etymology
The threadfin acara was first described in 1848 by the German zoologists J. P. Müller andTroschel Franz Hermann Troschel (10 October 1810 – 6 November 1882) was a German zoologist born in Spandau.
He studied mathematics and natural history at the University of Berlin, where he was awarded his doctorate in 1834.Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; ...
as ''Acara heckelii'', and in 1912 was placed by Eigenmann Eigenmann is a surname. Notable persons with that surname include:
* Andi Eigenmann (born 1990), Filipino actress
* Carl H. Eigenmann (1863–1927), German–American ichthyologist, husband of Rosa Eigenmann
* Eduardo de Mesa Eigenmann, birth name ...
in the monotypic genus ''Acarichthys''. The specific name honours the ichthyologyst Johann Jakob Heckel
Johann Jakob Heckel (23 January 1790 – 1 March 1857) was an Austrian taxidermist, zoologist, and ichthyologist from Mannheim in the Electoral Palatinate.
Life
Though not a formally trained biologist, he worked his way up through the ranks to ev ...
, director of the Vienna Museum of Natural History
The Natural History Museum Vienna (german: Naturhistorisches Museum Wien) is a large natural history museum located in Vienna, Austria. It is one of the most important natural history museums worldwide.
The NHM Vienna is one of the largest museum ...
, who studied and catalogued fish sent to him by collectors. Its common name is the "threadfin acara", referring to the elongated, free rays at the posterior end of the dorsal fin. The specific name Specific name may refer to:
* in Database management systems, a system-assigned name that is unique within a particular database
In taxonomy, either of these two meanings, each with its own set of rules:
* Specific name (botany), the two-part (bino ...
honours the Austria
Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
n ichthyologist
Ichthyology is the branch of zoology devoted to the study of fish, including bony fish ( Osteichthyes), cartilaginous fish (Chondrichthyes), and jawless fish (Agnatha). According to FishBase, 33,400 species of fish had been described as of Octobe ...
Johann Jakob Heckel
Johann Jakob Heckel (23 January 1790 – 1 March 1857) was an Austrian taxidermist, zoologist, and ichthyologist from Mannheim in the Electoral Palatinate.
Life
Though not a formally trained biologist, he worked his way up through the ranks to ev ...
(1790-1857), one of the pioneers in the study of cichlids.
Description
This is a laterally-compressed, deep-bodied fish with a brownish-silver upper body, silvery flanks and a pale belly. There is a vertical black streak below the eye, a black blotch on the front few rays of the dorsal fin and a small black spot on the flanks below the centre of the dorsal fin.
Distribution
The species is native to the Amazon and Essequibo basins in tropical South America. It has been introduced to Singapore and other parts of southeast Asia, perhaps having originated from aquaculture or aquaria. It is one of about ten species of South American cichlid to have become established in this part of Asia.Ecology
''A. heckelii'' is a benthic feeder, sifting through sand or mud on the river bed and feeding on the invertebrates present. The male fish has a harem of female fish. The eggs are laid in a breeding chamber that has been dug in the bottom by the female and a chamber has one or several long entrance tunnels. The eggs are cared for by the female, and the male stays outside and defends the entrances. After hatching, both parents care for the young and defend them, and the juveniles remain gregarious when independent of their parents.See also
*List of freshwater aquarium fish species
A vast number of aquatic species have successfully adapted to live in the freshwater aquarium. This list gives some examples of the most common species found in home aquariums.
Catfish
Characins and other characiformes
...
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q1577312 Geophagini Fish of South America Fish described in 1849 Taxa named by Johannes Peter Müller Taxa named by Franz Hermann Troschel es:Acarichthys