Platystacus
genus of Actinopterygii
Platystacus is a genus of banjo catfish in the family Aspredinidae. It is monotypic, being represented by the single species Platystacus cotylephorus, commonly known as the banded banjo . The genus Platystacus is the sister group to a clade containing Aspredo and Aspredinichthys. P. cotylephorus originates from coastal waters and lower portions of rivers of northern South America, from Venezuela to northern Brazil.
This species grows up to about 32 centimetres (13 in) SL and is distinguished from all other aspredinids by having 4+5 caudal fin rays. They are further distinguished from its close relatives by the absence of accessory maxillary barbels and the presence of well developed rows of unculiferous tubercles.
P. cotylephorus is usually found in brackish waters on the soft bottoms of shallow, turbid water near to the mouths of rivers. reportedly it migrates into freshwater, though spawning is believed to take place in brackish water. This species has an unusual mode of reproduction in which the eggs are attached to the underside of the female who carries them around with her until they hatch.
References
External links
Friel, John P. (14 April 2000).
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Platystacus” as genus of Actinopterygii. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
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This entry incorporates text from “Platystacus” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.