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Description: Species of Acestridium Haseman, 1911 are highly distinctive, small sized, specialized loricariid catfishes, which have very narrow body, snout prolonged with a distinctive anterior spatulate projection, and usually green colour in life. Acestridium was diagnosed by Schaefer (1991) based on the following characters: ten principal caudal-fin rays; plates at anterior snout margin forming conspicuous spatulate projection; head and body very slender, depressed; dorsal surface of head and trunk with longitudinal ridges; dorsal fin placed posteriorly, well beyond pelvic fin and just anterior to anal-fin origin; adipose fin absent; dermal plates anterior to first dorsal-fin proximal radial expanded, bearing ventromedial keel contacting the dorsal margin of the neural arches of the vertebrae six through twelve; and ridge of bone on the ventral surface of the lateral ethmoid contacting the metapterygoid channel reflected mesially. Currently, seven species of Acestridium are described: A. discus Haseman, 1911, A. dichromum Retzer, Nico & Provenzano, 1999, A. martini Retzer, Nico & Provenzano, 1999. A. triplax, Rodriguez & Reis, 2007, A. gymnogaster Reis & Lehmann, 2009, A. scutatum Reis & Lehmann A., 2009, and A. colombiense Retzer, 2005. Aquarium Care: will need a fairly strong current in the aquarium. Not the easiest to care for so really a catfish for the more experienced Loricariid keeper, so would be better in a species tank on their own. Diet: Fine Vegetarian foods especially algae and small meaty foods such as brine shrimp nauplii. They rarely sit on the substrate but on leaf stalks and branches so they are especially difficult to feed. Remarks: Depending on its surroundings this catfish can turn from green in to a more brownish colour and vice versa.

Green Whiptail Catfish

None

Loricariidae

South America: Upper Orinoco and Negro River basins, Venezuela. Type locality: Pozo Lucas, tributary of Río Orinoco, 7 km south of San Fernando de Atabapo, 4º02'N, 67º42'W, Amazonas State, Venezuela.

6.5cm. (2½ins)

25-29°c (77-85°f.)

6.5-7.2.

Froese, R. and D. Pauly. Editors. 2014. FishBase. World Wide Web electronic publication. www.fishbase.org, ( 08/2014 ).
Rodriguez, Monica S.; Reis Roberto E. ; A new species of Acestridium Haseman, 1911 (Loricariidae: Hypoptopomatinae) from the Eastern Amazon basin, Brazil. Neotrop. ichthyol. vol.5 no.4 Porto Alegre Oct./Dec. 2007.
Schlüter, Michael; Acestridium dichromum. Quick introduction. Amazonas magazine 12. July/August 2007.