Superregnum: Eukaryota Name Doradidae Bleeker, 1858 References * Froese, R. and D. Pauly. Editors. 2006. FishBase, version (02/2006). [1] Vernacular names Doradidae is a family of catfishes also known as thorny catfishes or talking catfishes. These fish are native to South America, primarily in Brazil, Peru, and the Guianas. Doradids are omnivorous.[3]
As of 2007, there are 31 genera and 78 species in this family.[1] Wertheimeria is considered to be the sister taxon to all other doradids.[4] This family is monophyletic and contains the subfamilies Platydoradinae, Doradinae, and Astrodoradinae, though their relationships are mostly unresolved.[5] Astrodoradinae contains the genera Amblydoras, Anadoras, Astrodoras, Hypodoras, Merodoras, Physopyxis, and Scorpiodoras. Distribution Doradids occur in most South American basins, though they are absent from the Pacific coast drainages and from coastal drainages south of the La Plata River.[4] 70% of the valid species occur in the Amazon basin; the Orinoco basin harbors about 22 species and ranks second in species richness.[4] On the other hand, only two species of doradids have been described from Brazilian eastern coastal basins: Wertheimeria maculata from the Jequitinhonha and Pardo rivers and Kalyptodoras bahiensis from the Paraguaçu River.[4] Appearance and anatomy Doradids are easily recognized by a well-developed nuchal shield in front of the dorsal fin as well as well-developed bony lumps along the lateral line that form thorny scutes.[1] Also, doradids typically have three pairs of barbels (no nasal barbels), an adipose fin, and 4–6 rays on the dorsal fin with a spine on the anterior (first) ray.[6] These fish are sometimes called "talking catfish" because of their ability to produce sound by moving their pectoral spine or vibrating their swim bladder.[6] Sizes range from 3.5 centimetres (1.4 in) SL in Physopyxis lyra to 120 centimetres (47 in) FL and 20 kilograms (44 lb) in Oxydoras niger.[4]
1. ^ a b c Higuchi, Horácio; Birindelli, José L. O.; Sousa, Leandro M.; Britski, Heraldo A. (2007). "Merodoras nheco, new genus and species from Rio Paraguay basin, Brazil (Siluriformes, Doradidae), and nomination of the new subfamily Astrodoradinae" (PDF). Zootaxa 1446: 31–42. http://www.mapress.com/zootaxa/2007f/zt01446p042.pdf. Retrieved 2009-06-24.
Source: Wikipedia, Wikispecies: All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License |
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