Moenkhausia forestii Benine, Mariguela, Oliveira, 2009

Ota, Renata Rúbia, Deprá, Gabriel de Carvalho, Graça, Weferson Júnio da & Pavanelli, Carla Simone, 2018, Peixes da planície de inundação do alto rio Paraná e áreas adjacentes: revised, annotated and updated, Neotropical Ichthyology 16 (2), pp. 1-111 : 30

Moenkhausia forestii Benine, Mariguela, Oliveira, 2009

Fig. 8

Body deep; greatest depth contained 2.2 to 2.6 and caudal peduncle depth 7.4 to 8.7 times in SL; head length 3.2 to 3.7, predorsal distance 1.7 to 1.9 and caudal peduncle length 9.4 to 13.9 in SL; snout length 3.0 to 4.0, horizontal orbital diameter 2.3 to 2.9 and least interorbital width 2.3 to 2.7 in HL. Mouth terminal; inner row of premaxilla with 5 teeth, outer with 3-5, dentary with 11 and maxilla with 1 or 2. Lateral line incomplete, with 7-11 pored scales; longitudinal series with 23-26 scales; transverse series above lateral line with 5 scale rows and below with 4 scale rows. Dorsal fin with 11 rays, pectoral fin with 12 or 13 rays, pelvic fin with 8 rays, anal fin with 21-27 rays and caudal fin with 19 rays. Ground color silvery; superior portion of eye red; scales with darkbrown border, conferring reticulated pattern to body; one dark-brown humeral spot; dark-brown longitudinal stripe along posterior half of flank; anterior half of caudal peduncle with light-beige area. Hyaline fins, except caudal fin; posterior portion of caudal peduncle and proximal third of caudal fin with conspicuous black transverse bar occupying their whole depth.

Maximum standard length. 36.4 mm.

Biological data. Males present small hooks on the segments of each anal-fin ray ( Benine et al., 2009).

Distribution. Upper rio Paraná and río Paraguay basins.

Remarks. Some specimens of Moenkhausia forestii were identified as M. aff. sanctaefilomenae by Graça, Pavanelli (2007). Both species occur in the upper rio Paraná floodplain, where M. forestii has been captured since 2009 by Nupélia staff. Moenkhausia forestii can be distinguished by having transverse series above lateral line with 5 and below with 4 scale rows (vs. 4 scale rows above and 3 below, in M. sanctaefilomenae ). Additionally, M. forestii can be distinguished from M. australe , another similar species, by having lateral line incompletely pored, transverse series above lateral line with 5 and below with 4 scale rows, and upper jaw length 39.9-44.0% HL (vs. lateral line completely pored, 4 scale rows above and 3 below, and upper jaw length 46.4-52.6% HL). Despite the general morphological similarity between M. australe , M. forestii and M. sanctaefilomenae, Benine et al. (2009) and Mariguela et al. (2013), in molecular analyses, considered them as different species. Moenkhausia forestii is a non-native species from the upper rio Paraná basin, and its recent occurrence can be associated with the functioning of the Canal da Piracema, a fish ladder that connects the region downstream from the Itaipu Dam to the region upstream from the dam ( Benine et al., 2009).

Figures

Fig. 8. a. Hemigrammus ora, NUP 18973, 26.4 mm SL, ressaco do Pau Veio, tributary of the rio Paraná, State of Paraná. b. Hyphessobrycon eques, 32.0 mm SL, fresh specimen, uncat. c. Hyphessobrycon moniliger (top, female, NUP 1248, 29.9 mm SL, ribeirão Bocaina, tributary of the rio Meia Ponte, Piracanjuba, State of Goiás; bottom, male, NUP 16949, 26.2 mm SL, lagoa da Onça, tributary of the rio Baía, Taquarussu, State of Mato Grosso do Sul). d. Moenkhausia australe, NUP 11115, 45.0 mm SL, riacho Caracu, tributary of the rio Paraná, Porto Rico, State of Paraná. e. Moenkhausia bonita, NUP 11700, 30.1 mm SL, lagoa das Pombas, tributary of the rio Paraná, Porto Rico, State of Paraná. f. Moenkhausia forestii, NUP 16583, 36.0 mm SL, rio Baía, tributary of the rio Paraná, Taquarussu, State of Mato Grosso do Sul. g. Moenkhausia cf. gracilima, NUP 11099, 33.1 mm SL, ribeirão São Pedro, tributary of the rio Paraná, São Pedro do Paraná, State of Paraná. h. Moenkhausia aff. intermedia, NUP 2389, 68.4 mm SL, Segredo Reservoir, Mangueirinha, State of Paraná. i. Moenkhausia sanctaefilomenae, 24.1 mm SL, uncat.