Brachyhypopomus provenzanoi Crampton, de Santana, Waddell & Lovejoy, 2017

Family:  Hypopomidae (Bluntnose knifefishes)
Max. size:  9.4 cm TL (male/unsexed); 11 cm TL (female)
Environment:  benthopelagic; freshwater; pH range: 3.1 - 4
Distribution:  South America: upper Orinoco and upper Negro (Amazonas drainage) in Venezuela.
Diagnosis:  Anal soft rays: 162-195. Brachyhypopomus provenzanoi is distinguished from other species of the genus Brachyhypopomus by the absence of scales in middorsal region of anterior third of body (vs. presence in all congeners except B. benjamini) and by its dorsal surface of body with irregular pattern of distinct dark blotches on depigmented tan-colored background (vs. speckled with small brown chromatophores on light brown background in B. benjamini) (Ref. 116763)
Biology:  Found in small, gently flowing, low-conductivity clearwater terra firme forest and savanna streams, and in static leaf-litter choked blackwater streams and swamps in Mauritia palm swamps. Most specimens in streams were observed sheltering in submerged and marginal aquatic vegetation growing in sandy beds, and those in Mauritia palm swamps were collected from dense leaf litter banks and root mats. Sympatric and syntopic with Brachyhypopomus bullocki, B. brevirostris, and B. sullivani in the type locality region. Food items food in the stomach contents were aquatic insect larvae and other small aquatic invertebrates (Ref. 116763).
IUCN Red List Status: Data deficient (DD); Date assessed: 07 September 2020 Ref. (130435)
Threat to humans:  harmless


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