Leporinus melanopleurodes
A small headstander from a pair of river basins in eastern Brazil, where it lives in clear, turbulent rapids over boulder-strewn bottoms.
Described relatively recently by science, it sits well outside the world of sport fishing — its value is ecological and taxonomic, representing the kind of specialized, range-restricted fish that makes Neotropical freshwater systems so biologically distinct.
Scientific Name: Leporinus melanopleurodes
- The most reliable field mark is a single broad dark stripe running along the midlateral line, one to two scale rows deep and centered just below the lateral line — a pattern that sets it apart from most close relatives.
- Closely resembles Leporinus melanopleura; the species name references that similarity directly, so stripe placement and scale row position are the details that matter for a confident ID.
- A small fish, with the largest specimens reaching about 12.9 cm (roughly 5 inches) standard length.
What to know
Habitat Distribution
- Restricted to the Rio das Almas and Rio Jiquiriçá basins in eastern Brazil — a narrow native range that makes it one of the more geographically limited members of its family.
- A specialist of clear, fast-flowing rapids over rocky substrate densely colonized by Podostemaceae (riverweeds) — turbulent, well-oxygenated headwater conditions.
- Strictly freshwater; not known from still or slow-moving water anywhere in its range.
Specific Spots
- Rocky substrate within active rapids, where dense Podostemaceae growth on boulders and bedrock provides both cover and a foraging base — the plant-covered rock is the structural anchor for this species.
- High-gradient, turbulent sections of river where dissolved oxygen stays elevated; absent from slower pools and backwaters where those conditions break down.
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