Hypostomus is a genus of catfish in the family Loricariidae. They are native to tropical and subtropical South America. H. plecostomus is the popular freshwater aquarium fish formerly known as Plecostomus plecostomus. The taxonomic structure of the Loricariidae is still being expanded by scientists. Hypostomus is a highly species-rich and widely distributed catfish genus.
Hypostomus cochliodon is a species of armored catfish native to the Paraguay and middle Paraná River basins in northern Argentina, southern Brazil and Paraguay. Initially it did not occur in the upper Paraná basin above the Guaíra Falls, but these disappeared after the construction of the Itaipu Dam, allowing this species to spread. It grows to a standard length of 23 cm (9.1 in).
Hypostomus jaguar, sometimes known as the jaguar pleco, is a species of catfish in the family Loricariidae. It is native to South America, where it occurs in the Paraguaçu River basin in the state of Bahia in Brazil.
Hypostomus hermanni, sometimes known as Hermann's pleco, is a species of catfish in the family Loricariidae. It is native to South America, where it occurs in the Tietê River basin, including the Piracicaba River, in Brazil. It is typically found in areas with flowing water of shallow to moderately shallow depth. The species reaches 24 cm (9.4 in) in total length and is believed to be a facultative air-breather.
Hypostomus khimaera is a species of catfish in the family Loricariidae. It is native to South America, where it occurs in the Paraguay River basin in Brazil. It is typically seen in small streams, including the Aquidauana River basin, where it is known from the margins of deeper, sandy areas. It is known to be syntopic with Hypostomus cochliodon in several parts of its range. The species reaches 16.4 cm SL and is believed to be a facultative air-breather. Its specific epithet, khimaera, derives from Greek and refers to the mythical chimera, as H. khimaera possesses features normally associated with multiple distinct species.
Hypostomus latifrons is a species of catfish in the family Loricariidae. It is native to South America, where it occurs in the Paraguay River basin. The species reaches 28.7 cm SL and is believed to be a facultative air-breather.
Hypostomus spiniger, sometimes known as the spiny plated pleco, is a disputed species of catfish in the family Loricariidae with a complex history of classification.
Hypostomus perdido is a species of catfish in the family Loricariidae. It is native to South America, where it occurs in the Perdido River, which is part of the Paraguay River basin in Brazil. It is typically found in portions of the river that have still or slow-moving water. The species reaches 18.1 cm SL and is believed to be a facultative air-breather. Its specific epithet, perdido, references the river in which it occurs.
Hypostomus regani is a species of catfish in the family Loricariidae. It is native to South America, where it occurs in the basins of the Paraná River, the Paraguay River, and the Uruguay River. The species reaches 41 cm (16 in) SL and is believed to be a facultative air-breather.
Hypostomus soniae is a species of catfish in the family Loricariidae. It is native to South America, where it occurs in the Tapajós basin in the state of Pará in Brazil. The species reaches 16.4 cm (6.5 in) in standard length. Its specific epithet, soniae, honors Sonia Fisch-Muller, a curator at the Museum of Geneva specializing in loricariid systematics who collected the type material.
Hypostomus weberi is a species of catfish in the family Loricariidae. It is native to South America, where it occurs in the middle Rio Negro in Brazil. One record of the species' occurrence refers to a "río Cicipa", which is thought to possibly correspond with the Siapa River, a tributary of the Casiquiare in Venezuela. The species is typically found in rapids or flooded forest environments. It reaches 17.5 cm SL and is known to feed on detritus. Its specific epithet, weberi, honors Claude Weber of the Natural History Museum of Geneva, for his contributions to knowledge of the genus Hypostomus.
Hypostomus boulengeri is a species of catfish in the family Loricariidae. It is native to South America. The species reaches 24.5 cm SL and is believed to be a facultative air-breather.
Hypostomus commersoni is a species of catfish in the family Loricariidae. It is native to South America, where it occurs in the Paraná River drainage, including the Iguazu River, the Paraguay River, the Río de la Plata, and the Dulce River. It is typically found in rivers with muddy substrates and moderate currents. The water that H. commersoni inhabits usually has a temperature of 16.8 to 27.8 °C, a pH of 7.2 to 9.2, a turbidity of 23.7 to 442 NTU, an oxygen concentration of 6.1 to 9.1 mg/L, and a conductivity of 1.087 to 2.654 μS/cm.
Hypostomus dardanelos is a species of catfish in the family Loricariidae. Its type locality is stated to be the Praia Grande River, a tributary of the Aripuanã in the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso.
Hypostomus delimai is a species of catfish in the family Loricariidae. It is native to South America, where it occurs in the basins of the Araguaia River and the Tocantins River in Brazil. It is typically found in areas with turbid water, riparian vegetation, and a substrate composed of rocks and sand. It is known to be sympatric with other species of Hypostomus, including H. faveolus and H. pyrineusi, as well as species of Aphanotorulus. The species reaches 25.3 cm in standard length and is believed to be a facultative air-breather.
Hypostomus heraldoi is a species of catfish in the family Loricariidae. It is native to South America, where it occurs in the Corumbá River and Rio Grande basins in the upper Paraná River drainage in Brazil. It is typically found in turbid waters with a substrate composed of rocks with some amount of sand. It is known to be syntopic with other loricariid species in the genus Hypostomus, including Hypostomus ancistroides, H. denticulatus, H. iheringii, H. margaritifer, and H. regani. The species reaches 23.6 cm in standard length and is believed to be a facultative air-breather.
Hypostomus kopeyaka is a species of catfish in the family Loricariidae. It is native to South America, where it occurs in the basin of the Tiquié River, a tributary of the Vaupés River, which is itself a tributary of the Rio Negro, in Brazil, although it has also been reported from Vaupés Department in Colombia. It generally occurs in rapids, cataract pools, and slow-flowing portions of the Tiquié and some of its large tributaries. The species reaches 22.6 cm in standard length and is believed to be a facultative air-breather. Its specific epithet, kopeyaka, refers to its common name in the Tuyuca and Tucano languages, kope ya’ka, reportedly meaning "pleco from the holes", in reference to the species' tendency to hide in holes in the river bank.
Hypostomus renestoi is a species of catfish in the family Loricariidae. It is native to South America, where it occurs in the upper Paraguay River basin in Brazil. The species was described in 2018 by Cláudio Henrique Zawadzki, Hugmar Pains da Silva, and Waldo Pinheiro Troy alongside the redescription of Hypostomus latirostris. FishBase does not list this species.
Hypostomus peckoltoides is a species of catfish in the family Loricariidae. It is native to South America, where it occurs in the Cuiabá River in the upper Paraguay River basin in Brazil. It is typically found in environments with turbid water, a substrate composed of rocks and sand, and various types of riparian vegetation. It is known to be syntopic with other species of Hypostomus, including H. boulengeri, H. cochliodon, H. latifrons, H. latirostris, and H. regani.
Hypostomus sertanejo is a species of catfish in the family Loricariidae. It is native to South America, where it occurs in the Jaguaribe River basin in northeastern Brazil. The species reaches 18.9 cm in standard length. It was described in 2017 by Cláudio Henrique Zawadzki, Telton Pedro A. Ramos, and Mark H. Sabaj Pérez. FishBase does not yet list this species.
