A new miniature species of Odontocharacidium (Characiformes: Crenuchidae) from the Río Orinoco basin, Venezuela

Abstract

ABSTRACT A new species of Odontocharacidium is described from the upper Río Orinoco basin, in Venezuela. The new species is distinguished from its only congener, Odontocharacidium aphanes, by the presence of: the antorbital, the parietal branch of the supraorbital laterosensory canal, the postcleithrum 1, the conspicuous bars extending ventrally below the middle portion of the body posteriorly, and two dark round blotches at the tip of the caudal peduncle. With the recognition of an additional species of Odontocharacidium the diagnostic characters of the genus and the variability in the number of maxillary teeth in specimens are discussed.

Keywords

• Characidiinae
• Miniaturization
• Neotropics
• Taxonomy
• Teleostei