Superregnum: Eukaryota
Cladus: Unikonta
Cladus: Opisthokonta
Cladus: Holozoa
Regnum: Animalia
Subregnum: Eumetazoa
Cladus: Bilateria
Cladus: Nephrozoa
Superphylum: Deuterostomia
Phylum: Chordata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Infraphylum: Gnathostomata
Megaclassis: Osteichthyes
Superclassis/Classis: Actinopterygii
Classis/Subclassis: Actinopteri
Subclassis/Infraclassis: Neopterygii
Infraclassis: Teleostei
Megacohors: Osteoglossocephalai
Supercohors: Clupeocephala
Cohors: Otomorpha
Subcohors: Ostariophysi
Sectio: Otophysa
Ordo: Siluriformes
Familia: Loricariidae
Subfamilia: Loricariinae
Tribus: Loricariini
Genus: Metaloricaria
Metaloricaria is a genus of armored catfishes native to South America.
Taxonomy
The phylogenetic position of Metaloricaria remains uncertain. Though classified in the tribe Harttiini in the subfamily Loricariinae, the length of the maxillary barbels (longer than in all other Harttiini), low number of teeth and their reduced size, reduction of the number of caudal-fin rays, and sexual dimorphism reminiscent of that seen in the Rineloricaria group, tend to support a closer relationship of Metaloricaria with the tribe Loricariini.[1]
Species
There are currently two recognized species in this genus:[2]
Metaloricaria nijsseni (Boeseman, 1976)
Metaloricaria paucidens Isbrücker, 1975
Distribution and habitat
Metaloricaria is only known from the Guiana Shield in French Guiana and Suriname where the species occupy an ecological niche similar to that of Harttia. The species are rarely found in their natural environment and inhabit primarily streams over rocky and sandy substrates.[1]
Description
Sexual dimorphism includes hypertrophied development of odontodes arranged in brushes along the sides of the head and on the spine and rays of the pectoral fins in mature males. Females also possess such brushes along sides of the head, but do not seem to develop pectoral-fin enlarged odontodes.[1]
References
Covain, Raphael; Fisch-Muller, Sonia (2007). "The genera of the Neotropical armored catfish subfamily Loricariinae (Siluriformes: Loricariidae): a practical key and synopsis" (PDF). Zootaxa. 1462: 1–40. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.1462.1.1.
Froese, Rainer and Pauly, Daniel, eds. (2011). Species of Metaloricaria in FishBase. December 2011 version.
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