A new species of Bryconamericus (Characidae: Stevardiinae) with breeding tubercles from the upper rio Paraná basin

Abstract

Five species of Bryconamericus are known from the upper rio Paraná basin: ‘B.’ aff. iheringii, ‘B.’ coeruleus, B.stramineus, ‘B.’ turiuba and the non-native B. exodon. The new species can be easily distinguished from them by its body depth (27.8–31.8% SL) and the teeth aligned in the outer row of the premaxilla (except ‘B.’ aff. iheringii). The new species is distributed in tributaries to the Piquiri, Ivaí and Tibagi rivers, at altitudes between 498 and 900 m a.s.l. The geographic distribution of the new species is similar to the congener ‘B.’ coeruleus. Other species with similar distribution are Apareiodon vladii and Planaltina kaingang, although they only occur in the Piquiri and Ivaí river basins. Furthermore, this work records the new species with the presence of breeding tubercles. These tubercles are located on the dorsal and lateral portions of the head and on the posterior margin of the scales of mature males; and in females, when present, they are smaller and restricted to the posterior margin of the scales. Comments are made on the presence of breeding tubercles in other groups of fishes, and also on some dimorphic characters present in the new species.