SCOTCAT.COM  

Devya Hemraj (1) Mark Henry Sabaj (2)

Very similar to Ancistrus leucostictus from the same habitat and may well turn out to be the same species. Males as per this genus have bushy tentacles on the head, whereas the females have them shorter. Colouration: Black; a few minute white dots on back and fins, more numerous on belly, sometimes quite obscure; all fins black, the dorsal and caudal margined with white or yellow. Aquarium Care: The Ancistrus genera make good community fish where they do not grow too big for the aquarium. Some species have different requirements in the aquarium so best to read up on the species you have whereas if they need higher oxygen requirements or not, or if they prefer cooler waters if they originate from the southern parts of South America against the species from further up north. Diet: Vegetable foods such as cucumber and courgette and also tablet and meaty foods. Reproduction: The female lays her eggs in caves or crevices... that the male has chosen and cleaned.... as a cluster. The male usually then guards the eggs after ejecting the female. The fry then cling to the sides of the cave and when they use up their yolk sac, which is around the four to seven day period, they will be ready to feed on infusuria, vegetable matter, brine shrimp naupli or micro worms. In a community tank a few will survive if enough hiding places are afforded to them. Etymology: The specific name lithurgicus: etymology not explained, perhaps derived from lithurgus, a stone worker, referring to its type locality, a waterfall, where it may use its sucker mouth to cling to rocks in swift water.

None

None

Loricariidae

South America: Essequibo River basin in Guyana. Type locality: Crab Falls; Lower Essequibo, British Guiana.

13.0cm. (5¼ins)

25-28°c (77-83°f.)

6.5-7.5.

Ferraris, C.J. Jr., 2007. Checklist of catfishes, recent and fossil (Osteichthyes: Siluriformes), and catalogue of siluriform primary types. Zootaxa 1418:1-628.
Fisch-Muller, S., 2003. Loricariidae-Ancistrinae (Armored catfishes). p. 373-400. In R.E. Reis, S.O. Kullander and C.J. Ferraris, Jr. (eds.) Checklist of the Freshwater Fishes of South and Central America. Porto Alegre: EDIPUCRS, Brasil.
Froese, R. and D. Pauly. Editors. 2018. FishBase. World Wide Web electronic publication. www.fishbase.org, ( 10/2018 ).
www.l-welse.com
Souza, LS de; Taphorn, DC & Armbruster, JW, 2019 "Review of Ancistrus (Siluriformes: Loricariidae) from the northwestern Guiana Shield, Orinoco Andes, and adjacent basins with description of six new species" (abstract) (Zootaxa, Vol. 4552 No. 1).