A new species of small catfish was discovered in Putumayo and Nanay Rivers of the Amazon Basin in Loreto region and named after Yaguas National Park, an area managed by the State-run
National Service for Protected Natural Areas (Sernanp).
This freshwater fish has been named Mastiglanis yaguas and belongs to the genus Mastiglanis (Siluriformes: Heptapteridae). It was discovered as part of the Rapid Biological Inventory (RBI) No. 23 (Field Museum) carried out in the Yaguas River in 2010 by biologist Max Hidalgo.
This discovery confirmed
Yaguas National Park's reputation as the protected natural area with the greatest diversity of fish in the Peruvian Amazon.
The study and identification of this hydrobiological specimen were conducted in the Ichthyological Collection of the
Natural History Museum at San Marcos University by biologists Dario Faustino-Fuster and Hernan Ortega, as well as in collections in Brazil and the United States.
The research indicates that Mastiglanis yaguas has little skin pigmentation, large eyes, highly elongated maxillary chins that extend beyond the origin of the adipose fin, lower mouth, long pelvic fins and very peculiar osteological characteristics, different from other species within the same genus.
Moreover, the recognition and discovery of this new species represent the first official record of the genus Mastiglanis in Peru.
The discovery is part of the Rapid Biological Inventory submitted to Sernanp —a unit attached to the Ministry of the Environment— to highlight the important biodiversity in this area, which contributed to the conservation of Yaguas through its establishment, first, as reserved zone in 2011 and, then, as national park in 2018.
"This valuable discovery demonstrates the importance of developing scientific research studies in the field of protected natural areas, which house important elements of our biodiversity that have yet to be known and studied," Sernanp emphasized.
Sernanp said that it promotes the development of this type of activities, which contributes to the development of biodiversity conservation strategies and the generation of information necessary for the decision-making regarding the management of such spaces.
(END) NDP/LZD/MAO/RMB/MVB
Published: 9/10/2020