Revisão taxonômica de Peckoltia sabaji Armbruster, 2003 (Siluriformes, Loricariidae)

Abstract

Endemic from the Neotropical region, Loricariidae is the family with the highest species richness of the order Siluriformes. With approximately 920 valid species it is one of the largest families of fish in the world and the second largest among neotropical freshwater fish. Peckoltia sabaji was described based on specimens from the drains of the Essequibo rivers in Guyana, Takutu River, a tributary of the upper Rio Branco on the border between Brazil and Guyana, as well as the Casiquiare and Orinoco rivers in Venezuela. However, this species is widely distributed in the Brazilian Amazon, mainly in the rivers that make up the drainage located in the state of Pará. The main objective of this work was to review the taxonomic status and distribution of Peckoltia sabaji Armbruster, 2003, to compare P. Sabaji of the Amazon basin with those of the locality type. Two hundred twenty-four specimens of Peckoltia sabaji were examined, which included paraphrases, as well as some topotypes and specimens from several rivers in the Brazilian Amazon. The results of the present study indicate a large morphological variation and color pattern among the different populations of P. sabaji. It was also possible to identify one possible new specie, from the Madeira River. However, it is necessary to increase the number of specimens analyzed and if possible to use molecular techniques, to describe the new taxa.