Before I start I would just like to say that this is an open discussion. I am presenting facts, and myths about this species. I see too many aquarium hobbyist claiming to have it and most are convinced that they own one because some guy at their LFS(local fish store) said it was a true perruno. If it makes you feel any better I will not think any less of you if you are not convinced after reading what I have to say and seeing the facts that I am presenting here. I'd like to start by presenting the following links about this fish.
http://www.planetcatfish.com/catelog/species.php?species_id=685
The pictures provided here are actual preserved specimen of P. perruno. It is a mid sized individual that is located at a museum. I am not sure of the specimen number or other facts about it. The other pictures are of a drawing done of this fish. both are acurate representations of the species. The size mentioned seems more speculative to me though.
http://www.scotcat.com/factsheets/perrunichthys_perruno.htm
The pictures provided here are of Leiarius marmoratus. The material presented is accurate to a degree but seems to be from dated sources. Some of the information seems speculative if not based on leiarius or other Pimelodid species.
http://www.fishbase.org/summary/speciessummary.php?id=12120
The information provided in this link is very small in comparison to others. Lends me to think it is either more accurate and based on what is known of the fish. Size still seems speculative to me.
Ok with the above information it is also good to know the following. Lake Maracaibo is under heavy fishing pressures, infestation of alien plant and wild life. It has heavy oil shipping traffic, it is extremely polluted as well. In an effort to clean it up a bit and help save the local environment the government of Venezuela basically declared a war of sorts. There is no exporting of fish allowed out of it. This lake connect directly to the gulf of Venezuela. Makes me wonder if it has high salinity. there have not been exports of fish out of there for many decades now in an effort to reduce stress on local wildlife populations. Duckweed is a major issue also. This being noted, it is next to impossible for anyone to receive a true perruno.
My friend and catfish expert Dr. John Lundberg agrees with this. He has made many trips to Lake Maracaibo over the last few decades. He made a trip 10 years ago to collect perruno for further research. He was able to find 2 of these catfish. He preserved them and brought them back to the states for analysis. He prepared one's skeleton, and the other was preserved in alcohol. recently they have done DNA analysis of this specimen placing it as a basal species in the genus Leiarius. Suggesting that the Genus is gaining dorsal fin rays instead of losing them over time. This is a picture of an adult specimen he found and this picture is his. It was taken within a few hours of capturing the fish. As you can see it is quit large.
IMO based on the information provided here there is no one, and has been no one in the hobby that has true perrunos for many decades. Unless your fish is 40-50 years old you probably dont have one. Rather you more likely have one of the other leiarius species.
I hope this has been informative.
Note: Information provided by Dr. John Lundberg is through a slideshow presentation he made 10 years ago. I cannot put words in his mouth and will ask him for a formal paper that I am sure he has done on his findings for reference. Til that time I appologize if my representation of the material he provided through email to me of his slide show is inaccurate. The picture provided is for identification purposes only and you do not have rights to reproduce it in any manner.
Thanks
Cliff let the discussion begin.
So that everyone knows. I have almost been under speculation for many years that P. perruno was actually just a subspecies of Leiarius marmoratus (formerly considered synonymous with Leiarius longibarbis) When I presented my curiosity to Dr. Lundberg he sent me his findings in the form of a slideshow presentation he made nearly 10 years ago. What does everyone else think of this? I just wanted to get it out there because there are too many people being dupped into thinking they have perrunos when they don't. no offense to anyone.
Ref.
Lundberg, J.G. and M.W. Littmann. 2003.
http://www.planetcatfish.com/catelog/species.php?species_id=685
The pictures provided here are actual preserved specimen of P. perruno. It is a mid sized individual that is located at a museum. I am not sure of the specimen number or other facts about it. The other pictures are of a drawing done of this fish. both are acurate representations of the species. The size mentioned seems more speculative to me though.
http://www.scotcat.com/factsheets/perrunichthys_perruno.htm
The pictures provided here are of Leiarius marmoratus. The material presented is accurate to a degree but seems to be from dated sources. Some of the information seems speculative if not based on leiarius or other Pimelodid species.
http://www.fishbase.org/summary/speciessummary.php?id=12120
The information provided in this link is very small in comparison to others. Lends me to think it is either more accurate and based on what is known of the fish. Size still seems speculative to me.
Ok with the above information it is also good to know the following. Lake Maracaibo is under heavy fishing pressures, infestation of alien plant and wild life. It has heavy oil shipping traffic, it is extremely polluted as well. In an effort to clean it up a bit and help save the local environment the government of Venezuela basically declared a war of sorts. There is no exporting of fish allowed out of it. This lake connect directly to the gulf of Venezuela. Makes me wonder if it has high salinity. there have not been exports of fish out of there for many decades now in an effort to reduce stress on local wildlife populations. Duckweed is a major issue also. This being noted, it is next to impossible for anyone to receive a true perruno.
My friend and catfish expert Dr. John Lundberg agrees with this. He has made many trips to Lake Maracaibo over the last few decades. He made a trip 10 years ago to collect perruno for further research. He was able to find 2 of these catfish. He preserved them and brought them back to the states for analysis. He prepared one's skeleton, and the other was preserved in alcohol. recently they have done DNA analysis of this specimen placing it as a basal species in the genus Leiarius. Suggesting that the Genus is gaining dorsal fin rays instead of losing them over time. This is a picture of an adult specimen he found and this picture is his. It was taken within a few hours of capturing the fish. As you can see it is quit large.
IMO based on the information provided here there is no one, and has been no one in the hobby that has true perrunos for many decades. Unless your fish is 40-50 years old you probably dont have one. Rather you more likely have one of the other leiarius species.
I hope this has been informative. Note: Information provided by Dr. John Lundberg is through a slideshow presentation he made 10 years ago. I cannot put words in his mouth and will ask him for a formal paper that I am sure he has done on his findings for reference. Til that time I appologize if my representation of the material he provided through email to me of his slide show is inaccurate. The picture provided is for identification purposes only and you do not have rights to reproduce it in any manner.
Thanks
Cliff
let the discussion begin. So that everyone knows. I have almost been under speculation for many years that P. perruno was actually just a subspecies of Leiarius marmoratus (formerly considered synonymous with Leiarius longibarbis) When I presented my curiosity to Dr. Lundberg he sent me his findings in the form of a slideshow presentation he made nearly 10 years ago. What does everyone else think of this? I just wanted to get it out there because there are too many people being dupped into thinking they have perrunos when they don't.
no offense to anyone.Ref.
Lundberg, J.G. and M.W. Littmann. 2003.
