Iheringichthys is a small genus

Genus

In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...

 of catfish

Catfish

Catfishes are a diverse group of ray-finned fish. Named for their prominent barbels, which resemble a cat's whiskers, catfish range in size and behavior from the heaviest and longest, the Mekong giant catfish from Southeast Asia and the second longest, the wels catfish of Eurasia, to detritivores...

 (order

Order (biology)

In scientific classification used in biology, the order is# a taxonomic rank used in the classification of organisms. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, family, genus, and species, with order fitting in between class and family...

 Siluriformes) of the family

Family (biology)

In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...

 Pimelodidae

Pimelodidae

Pimelodidae, commonly known as the long-whiskered catfishes, is a family of catfishes .-Taxonomy:Pimelodidae has undergone much revision. Currently, the family contains about 30 genera and about 90 recognized and known but unnamed species...

. It includes two species, I. labrosus and I. megalops.

Appearance and anatomy

Iheringichthys species have a narrow, small mouth positioned to point downwards.

Ecology

I. labrosus has been studied to feed off of the bottom, mainly at dawn and during daytime hours. Main items in the diet of I. labrosus are aquatic insects (mainly Chironomidae

Chironomidae

Chironomidae are a family of nematoceran flies with a global distribution. They are closely related to the Ceratopogonidae, Simuliidae, and Thaumaleidae...

) and mollusks (mainly Bivalvia

Bivalvia

Bivalvia is a taxonomic class of marine and freshwater molluscs. This class includes clams, oysters, mussels, scallops, and many other families of molluscs that have two hinged shells...

). Studies on I. labrosus demonstrates that this species is non-migratory and does not exhibit any parental care. These fish reproduce all year, with spawning peaking from February to May.

Relationship to humans

I. labrosus is a secondary commercial fish species in the Itaipu Reservoir. With the end of the trophic upsurge period in the Itaipu Reservoir, secondary species may become important resources for the commercial fishery, including I. labrosus. It is an important fish species in other reservoirs of the basin, especially Promissão

Promissão

Promissão is a municipality in the state of São Paulo in Brazil. The population in 2004 was 32,708 and the area is 784.32 km². The elevation is 426 m.- External links :...

 and Água Vermelha Reservoir

Água Vermelha Dam

The Água Vermelha Dam is an embankment dam on the Grande River near Iturama in Minas Gerais/São Paulo, Brazil. It was constructed for hydroelectric power production and flood control. Construction on the dam began in 1973 and it was completed and operational by 1978...

s. It is also an important sport fish in the sand beaches (“mandizeiros”) fishery along the upper Paraná River channel and main tributaries.