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s of the date of September 2021, 62 species of Chiloglanis have been described from freshwater systems across tropical Africa and is the second most species rich genus of mochokids, second only to Synodontis in the African continent and trying to identify most of them is an effort as they have variable patterns of dark spots and blotches on a brown body colouration. Despite the ease with which Chiloglanis individuals can be differentiated from other mochokid genera based on genus-typical traits such as pigmentation and mouth shape, Chiloglanis species are challenging to identify and differentiate (Seegers, 2008).

Chiloglanis anoterus - Male - Sabie River, South Africa

At first glance you would think that you are looking at a loricariid species from South America but I think that the Astroblepids, that are closely related to the Loricariids, look even more similar. Continental drift is one of the descriptions of the earliest ways geologists thought continents moved over time and "supercontinent," Gondwana, which eventually moved to form the continents we know today. Fossils of similar organisms across widely disparate continents encouraged the revolutionary theory of continental drift so it is not too surprising to to see similarities between our factsheet of the month and the sucker mouth catfish of South America given that these two continents of South America and Africa were once joined at the hip, so to speak.

Our species this month hails from South Africa and is endemic to the river streams of the Phongola and Incomati systems. One of the most characteristic features of the group is the presence of an oral disc (or sucker) formed from modifications of the jaws and lips, allowing them to support themselves while feeding within the fast-flowing river habitats that they occupy (Vigliotta, 2008; Friel & Vigliotta, 2011; Schmidt et al., 2014; 2015; 2016; 2017;)

Astroblepus putumayoensis - South America, Colombia, Department of Putumayo

The above image shows a member of the Astroblepidae family of South America and the likeness with the African sub-family, Chiloglanidinae, with the oral disc and the colouration of this species. and the same conditions they encounter in their natural habitats.

Specifically, it appears that Chiloglanis anoterus is restricted to shallow waters and waterfall habitats and, and although waterfalls do not to act as a barrier to dispersal for this species, deep waters prevent their dispersal downstream from their high-altitude habitats (Morris et al., 2016).

Distrbution: Pongolo and Incomati River systems. Type locality: Upper Pivaan River (Pongola River system), altitude 4600 ft. (30º28'E, 27º30'S), Natal.

Pennant-tailed suckermouth

None

Chiloglanidinae

Africa: Endemic to the escarpment streams of the Pongolo and Incomati River systems. Type locality: Upper Pivaan River (Pongola River system), altitude 4600 ft. (30º28'E, 27º30'S), Natal. Found in upper catchments in fast flows of rocky habitats. Typically in the fastest and often shallowest riffles. A few populations in Mpumalanga are known from low-veld sections of the Sabie and Incomati Rivers.

9.0cm. (3½ins)

23-26°C (73-79°F)

Oral disc large, maxillary barbels short, not reaching beyond hind edge of disc, mandibular barbels very short, mandibular toothpad narrow, teeth closely gathered, up to 12. Dorsal spine short (half length of fin).

Good oxygenated water from a power filter. Sand or gravel substrate with smooth rocks or pebbles. Their dorsal and pectoral fins are sharp and can cause wounds if not handled carefully.

Not reported.

Males with conical gennital papillum and penant shaped caudal fin. The females caudal fin is emarginate.

Mouth and dentition suggest that it is a bottom feeder and algal grazer. In the aquarium feed algae, fly larvae foods, bloodworm, and flake food.

Caudal fin: The tail.
Dorsal fin: The primary rayed fin(s) on top of the body.
Emarginate: Concave; used to describe the posterior border of a caudal fin which is inwardly curved; a caudal fin with a slightly concave margin.
Mandibular barbels: Pertaining to the lower jaw. (mandibular barbels).
Maxillary barbels: Pertaining to the upper jaw (maxillary barbels).
Papillum: A small fleshy projection, plural papillae.
Pectoral fins: The paired fins just behind the head.

Chiloglanis: Cheilos = lip; glanis = catfish.

Engelbrecht, J., Bills, R. & Cambray, J. 2007. Chiloglanis anoterus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2007.
Ferraris, C.J. Jr., 2007. Checklist of catfishes, recent and fossil (Osteichthyes: Siluriformes), and catalogue of siluriform primary types. Zootaxa 1418:1-628.
Froese, R. and D. Pauly. Editors. 2017. FishBase. World Wide Web electronic publication. www.fishbase.org, ( 02/2017 ).
National Geographic. Resource Library | Encyclopedic Entry. Continental drift.
Seegers, L. 2008 The catfishes of Africa. A handbook for identification and maintenance. Aqualog Verlag A.C.S. GmbH, Germany. 604 p.
Skelton, P.H. 1993 A complete guide to the freshwater fishes of southern Africa. Southern Book Publishers. 388 p.
Water & Sanitation (Powerpoint Presentation): Dept. water & Sanitation, Republic of South Africa. Presented by Beason Mwaka IncoMaputo Water Commission - South Africa 11th Dec. 2017.
Watson, Henry B. Unrecognised endemic biodiversity within East African Chiloglanis catfish populations. University of Bristol. Dec. 2019.

Photo Credits

© Russel Brian Tate
© Carlos A. Ardila Rodriguez