Samiksha Jaiswal (Editor)

South American lungfish

Updated on
Edit
Like
Comment
Share on FacebookTweet on TwitterShare on LinkedInShare on Reddit
Kingdom
  
Phylum
  
Chordata

Rank
  
Species

Subclass
  
Lungfish

Scientific name
  
Lepidosiren paradoxa

Higher classification
  
Lepidosiren

Order
  
Lepidosireniformes

South American lungfish wwwtropicalfishkeepingcomwpcontentuploads2

Family
  
LepidosirenidaeBonaparte, 1841

Genus
  
LepidosirenFitzinger, 1837

Similar
  
Lungfish, Lepidosiren, Protopterus, Queensland lungfish, West African lungfish

16 south american lungfish lepidosiren paradoxa


The South American lungfish (Lepidosiren paradoxa) is the single species of lungfish found in swamps and slow-moving waters of the Amazon, Paraguay, and lower Paraná River basins in South America. Notable as an obligate air-breather, it is the sole member of its family Lepidosirenidae. Relatively little is known about the South American lungfish. Additional common names include American mud-fish and scaly salamanderfish. In Portuguese, it is also known as piramboia ([piɾɐ̃ˈbɔj.jɐ]), pirarucu-bóia ([piɾɐɾuˈku ˈbɔj.jɐ]), traíra-bóia ([tɾɐˈiɾɐ ˈbɔj.jɐ]), and caramuru ([kɐɾɐmuˈɾu]).

Contents

South American lungfish South American lungfish fish Britannicacom

The immature lungfish is spotted with gold on a black background; in the adult, this fades to a brown or gray color. Its tooth-bearing premaxillary and maxillary bones are fused as in all Dipnoi. South American lungfish also share an autostylic jaw suspension (where the palatoquadrate is fused to the cranium) and powerful adductor jaw muscles with the extant Dipnoi. Like the African lungfishes, this species has an elongated, almost eel-like body. It may reach a length of 125 cm (4.10 ft). The pectoral fins are thin and thread-like, while the pelvic fins are somewhat larger, and set far back. The fins are connected to the shoulder by a single bone, which is a marked difference from most fish, whose fins usually have at least four bones at their base; and a marked similarity with nearly all land-dwelling vertebrates. The gills are greatly reduced and essentially non-functional in the adults.

South American lungfish South American Lungfish

Juvenile lungfish feed on insect larvae and snails, while adults are omnivorous, adding algae and shrimp to their diets, crushing them with their heavily mineralized tooth-plates. The fishes' usual habitats disappear during the dry season, so they burrow into the mud and make a chamber about 30–50 cm (12–20 in) down, leaving a few holes to the surface for air. During this aestivation, they produce a layer of mucus to seal in moisture, and slow their metabolism down greatly.

South American lungfish south american lungfish Lepidosiren paradoxa amazon biotope YouTube

When the rainy season begins, they come out and begin mating. The parents build a nest for the young, which resemble tadpoles and have four external gills. To enrich the oxygen in the nest, the male develops highly vascularized structures on his pelvic fins that release additional oxygen into the water. The young become air-breathing at about seven weeks. Juveniles have external threadlike gills very much like those of newts.

South American lungfish Freshwater Animal South American Lungfish Amazonian Lungfish Family

South american lungfish lepidosiren paradoxa amazon biotope


References

South American lungfish Wikipedia


Similar Topics