This magnificent Erythrinus comes from the drainage of the Madre de Dios, which is around 1,100 km long, lies between Bolivia and Peru and is the largest tributary of the Rio Madeira. The genus Erythrinus is in great need of revision. Nobody knows how many species there are and how they can be distinguished from each other. Only two species are currently “officially” recognized, namely Erythrinus erythrinus, which is said to be distributed over practically the whole of South America, and E. kessleri from Bahia in Brazil. This is obviously wrong, there are many more species. However, as species of these common and conspicuous animals have been repeatedly described over the centuries on the basis of museum specimens and later synonymized again, a full-time employee would have to spend at least 6-8 years working exclusively on this genus in order to bring order to the chaos of names and possibly reclassify species that have never been described before. However, this is unlikely to happen at present.
However, Erythrinus sp. Madre de Dios is unmistakable due to its deep orange underside. Large males, recognizable by their elongated dorsal fin, are truly magnificent animals. Juveniles are not yet so beautiful, which is why sexually mature animals of 9-12 cm in length are preferably exported. The largest specimens of this species that we have seen so far have been 12-15 cm long. It is completely unclear why a predatory fish that specializes in low-oxygen waters as a hunting ground has to be so colourful. But the aquarist is happy!
For more information on Erythrinus from Peru, see here: https://www.aquariumglaser.de/en/09-characoids-tetra-relationship/erythrinus-erythrinus-peru-2/ and here https://www.aquariumglaser.de/en/09-characoids-tetra-relationship/erythrinus_sp_tahuayo_river_en/
For our customers: the animals have code 253394 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
Text & photos: Frank Schäfer
