Hypostomus plecostomus
| Hypostomus plecostomus | |
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Not evaluated (IUCN 3.1)
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| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Siluriformes |
| Family: | Loricariidae |
| Genus: | Hypostomus |
| Species: | H. plecostomus |
| Binomial name | |
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Hypostomus plecostomus (Linnaeus, 1758) |
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| Synonyms | |
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Acipenser plecostomus Linnaeus, 1758 |
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Acipenser plecostomus Linnaeus, 1758
Hypostomus guacari Lacepède, 1803
Loricaria flava Shaw, 1804
Plecostomus bicirrosus Gronow, 1854
Plecostomus brasiliensis Bleeker, 1864
Plecostomus plecostomus (Linnaeus, 1758)
Pterygoplichthys plecostomus (Linnaeus, 1758)
Hypostomus plecostomus, the suckermouth catfish or common pleco, is a tropical fish belonging to the armored catfish family (Loricariidae), named for the armor-like longitudinal rows of scutes that cover the upper parts of the head and body (the lower surface of head and abdomen is naked). Although the name Hypostomus plecostomus is often used to refer to common plecostomus sold in aquarium shops, most are actually members of other genera.
Suckermouth catfish are of little or no value as a food fish, although they are at least occasionally consumed over their native range. A demand exists for them, however, in the aquarium trade.
This species' native range is tropical northeastern South America; it naturally occurs in northeastern Brazil, the Guianas, and Trinidad and Tobago. Confusingly, the name Hypostomus plecostomus (or Plecostomus plecostomus) has sometimes been incorrectly used for several more-or-less similar loricariid catfishes, both in the popular and scientific literature. For example, it has sometimes been suggested that it occurs in southern Central America, but this is an entirely separate species, Hemiancistrus aspidolepis (also known under another synonym, Hypostomus panamensis).
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