CLOFFAR - update 3 - supplement to Checklist of the Freshwater Fishes of Argentina

In May 2016 we have published the second update to CLOFFAR and in these few months a total of 22 changes have summed up. The total number of fishes known from the freshwaters of Argentina has increased to 538, caused by one new Hoplias and 13 first records. Four new combinations and four synonymizations do not have influence on the total count. The paper of most importance in quantity without doubt is the one of Casciotta et al. on their findings in the Iguazú National Park, unfortunately also including two first records of exotic introduced species, Clarias gariepinus and Geophagus brasiliensis. Clarias gariepinus was included in this update against our standard to only recognize records which have been published based on voucher material. In this case the determination could undoubtfully be done based on a photo and this invasive species has been reported before from the lower Iguazú river in Brazil in 2012 already. The confirmation of Crenicichla iguassuensis has undergone some see-saw development in the past and the respective remarks can be found when following the link. Also another publication needs to be commented on: The synonymyzations of four rivulids by Calviño has been published as an isolated statement beyond any systematical context. Nevertheless, it has been formally published and in some of these cases the probability of being synonyms had been stated previously by other authors. Future will show the resilience and acceptance of those synonymizations. The paper of Ortí et al. dates from 2008 and was simply not known to us before and thus, the new combination of Myloplus tiete from Myleus is only included now, eigth years later.Fil: Koerber, Stefan. Gesellschaft für Ichthyolgie; AlemaniaFil: Litz, Thomas O.. Gesellschaft für Ichthyolgie; AlemaniaFil: Mirande, Juan Marcos. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico - Tucumán. Unidad Ejecutora Lillo; Argentin

Ichthyological ecoregions of Argentina

The Argentine Republic is situated in the southernmost portion of the American continent, occupying over 2,785,600 km2 not including the Antarctic territory. The country ranges from subtropical areas (21º46’S) to subantarctic regions (55º03’S), extending latitudinally over about 4,000 km. It possesses significant latitudinal and altitudinal variation (33º of latitudinal range, and heights from Bajo de San Julián in Santa Cruz province at 105 m below sea level, up to Mt. Aconcagua, 6,959 m over sea level), as well as two gradients of physical variability, extending in north-south and east-west directions. Owing to these features, the country presents a wide range of climates and soil types, being one of the countries with greatest diversity of biogeographical units (Lean et al., 1990, In: Bertonatti & Corcuera, 2000). There are four main hydrographic systems: Río de la Plata basin, the Atlantic and Pacific drainages, and several endorrheic systems. Within these basins, the ichthyofaunistic assemblage is well represented, with different magnitude in accordance with the different taxonomic groupings and regions considered. From an ichthyogeographic standpoint, and according to the works of Ringuelet (1975) and Arratia et al. (1983), Argentina is included in the Brasilic and Austral Subregions. The first of these is represented by two domains: the Andean Domain, comprising the southernmost portion of Titicaca Province, and the Paranensean Domain, including part of Alto Paraná and Paranoplatensean Provinces. The Austral Subregion is represented in Argentina by the Subandean-Cuyan and Patagonian Provinces. The present survey indicates that there are about 441 fish species in Argentina, distributed throughout the country; this number represents less than 10% of the total fish species occurring in the Neotropical Region. There is a recognizable trend of faunal impoverishment, both in North-South and East-West direction, reaching its maximum expression in the provinces of Tierra del Fuego (situated at approximately 52º30’S to 55ºS, and 65ºS to 68º50’W) and San Juan (approximately 28º50’S and 67ºW to 70º45’W), which have 4 and 5 fish species respectively. In north-south direction, one of the regional indicators of this phenomenon is the Salado river basin in Buenos Aires province, which constitutes the southern distributional boundary for the majority of the paranoplatensean ichthyofauna; 12 of the families occurring in the Paraná-Plata system are absent from this pauperized paranensean ichthyofaunal assemblage. Most of the continental fish fauna of Argentina belongs to the primary division of Myers (1949), while some elements are included in the secondary division and others in an amphibiotic or ‘marine penetration’ category. This ichthyofaunistic scope encompasses a wide range of morphological, biological, ecological and ethological types (benthic and pelagic, migrating and sedentary, haematophagous or parasites, annual species, inhabitants of plains or heights, estivation-adapted, etc.) inhabiting different regions within the national territory

An analysis of Nigerian freshwater fishes: those under threat and conservation options

The study assessed qualitatively the threat status of all nigerian freshwater fishes using such criteria as rarity, size at maturity, mode of reproduction, human population density, habitat degradation, pollution and range of each species among others. The biology of 48% (129n) of nigerian freshwater species is not well known. Of the 266 known freshwater fishes, 47 species represented 17% are critically endangered, 15 (5%) are endangered , 8(3%), are vulnerable while 23(8%) are near threatened. The paper suggests increased basic knowledge of threatened species and conservation policy along three lines public awareness, legislation and creation of national parks, aquaria and reserves as measures needed to ensure the conservation of the fishe

Hyphessobrycon nicolasi (Teleostei: Characidae) a new species from the Uruguay River basin in the Mesopotamian Region, Argentina

Hyphessobrycon nicolasi is described from the Uruguay River basin in the Mesopotamian Region, Entre Ríos, Argentina. The new species can be distinguished from all congeners by the presence of a well-defined oblique and marginal black stripe on each lobe of the caudal fin. Other characters defining H. nicolasi are the possession of 1-3 teeth with 3-10 cusps on maxilla; outer premaxillary row with 2-3 small teeth, with 5 or 7 cusps; iv-vi, 27-36 anal-fin rays; 33-36 scales on the longitudinal series; two vertical dark spots on the humeral region; dorsal and anal fins dappled in black and base of caudal fin bearing conspicuous black spot; and the presence of bony hooks on the rays of dorsal, anal and caudal fins of the mature males.Fil: Miquelarena, Amalia Maria. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Instituto de Limnología "Dr. Raúl A. Ringuelet". Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo. Instituto de Limnología; ArgentinaFil: Lopez, Hugo Luis. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Instituto de Limnología "Dr. Raúl A. Ringuelet". Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo. Instituto de Limnología; Argentin

Evolutionary Dynamics of Multigene Families in Triportheus (Characiformes, Triportheidae): A Transposon Mediated Mechanism?

Triportheus (Characiformes, Triportheidae) is a freshwater fish genus with 18 valid species. These fishes are widely distributed in the major river drainages of South America, having commercial importance in the fishing market, mainly in the Amazon basin. This genus has diverged recently in a complex process of speciation carried out in different river basins. The use of repetitive sequences is suitable to trace the genomic reorganizations occured along the speciation process. In this work, the 5S rDNA multigene family has been characterized at molecular and phylogenetic level. The results showed that other multigene family has been found within the non-transcribed spacer (NTS): the U1 snRNA gene. Double-FISH with 5S and U1 probes were also performed, confirming the close linkage between these two multigene families. Moreover, evidences of different transposable elements (TE) were detected within the spacer, thus suggesting a transposon-mediated mechanism of 5S-U1 evolutionary pathway in this genus. Phylogenetic analysis demonstrated a species-specific grouping, except for Triportheus pantanensis, Triportheus aff. rotundatus and Triportheus trifurcatus. The evolutionary model of the 5S rDNA in Triportheus species has been discussed. In addition, the results suggest new clues for the speciation and evolutionary trend in these species, which could be suitable to use in other Characiformes species

On some species of Astyanax reported erroneously from Argentina

Several species of Astyanax have been reported from Argentina which currently are considered not to be distributed so far South or whose identity as Astyanax is doubtful. These records have been copied during decades based on historic accounts or erroneous determination. We conclude that Astyanax bimaculatus, A. fasciatus, A. paranahybae, A. scabripinnis, and A. taeniatus shall be excluded from the faunal lists of Argentina and, at least in the case of A. fasciatus, also of Uruguay.Varias especies de Astyanax han sido reportadas para Argentina, de las que actualmente no se considera que estén distribuidas tan al sur o cuya identidad en Astyanax es dudosa. Estos registros han sido repetidos durante décadas basándose en cuestiones históricas o identificaciones erróneas. Nosotros concluimos que Astyanax bimaculatus, A. fasciatus, A. paranahybae, A. scabripinnis y A. taeniatus deberían ser excluidas de las listas de fauna de Argentina y, al menos en el caso de A. fasciatus, también de Uruguay.Fil: Mirande, Juan Marcos. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Fundación Miguel Lillo; ArgentinaFil: Koerber, Stefan

Catálogo de ejemplares tipo de la colección ictiológica del Museo de La Plata. Adenda 2015

Fil: Miquelarena, Amalia María. División Zoología Vertebrados. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo. Universidad Nacional de La Plata; ArgentinaFil: Nadalin, Diego Oscar. División Zoología Vertebrados. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo. Universidad Nacional de La Plata; Argentin

First record of Astyanax puka Mirande, Aguilera & Azpelicueta, 2007 (Teleostei: Characidae) in Juramento River basin, Salta, Argentina

Astyanax puka was described from the endorheic Río Salí basin, Argentina, and it was not previously recorded elsewhere, being considered until now as endemic from that basin. Herein we record for the first time this species in the Río Juramento basin, Río de La Plata system.Fil: Teran, Guillermo Enrique. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científico y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Tucumán. Unidad Ejecutora Lillo; ArgentinaFil: Aguilera, Gaston. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científico y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Tucumán. Unidad Ejecutora Lillo; ArgentinaFil: Mirande, Juan Marcos. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científico y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Tucumán. Unidad Ejecutora Lillo; Argentin

The piranha genome provides molecular insight associated to its unique feeding behavior

The piranha enjoys notoriety due to its infamous predatory behavior but much is still not understood about its evolutionary origins and the underlying molecular mechanisms for its unusual feeding biology. We sequenced and assembled the red-bellied piranha (Pygocentrus nattereri) genome to aid future phenotypic and genetic investigations. The assembled draft genome is similar to other related fishes in repeat composition and gene count. Our evaluation of genes under positive selection suggests candidates for adaptations of piranhas’ feeding behavior in neural functions, behavior, and regulation of energy metabolism. In the fasted brain, we find genes differentially expressed that are involved in lipid metabolism and appetite regulation as well as genes that may control the aggression/boldness behavior of hungry piranhas. Our first analysis of the piranha genome offers new insight and resources for the study of piranha biology and for feeding motivation and starvation in other organisms