Austrolebias varzeae Costa, Reis & Behr, 2004

Family:  Rivulidae (Rivulines), subfamily: Cynolebiinae
Max. size:  3.37 cm SL (male/unsexed)
Environment:  benthopelagic; freshwater
Distribution:  South America: known only from upper rio Uruguay basin in Brazil.
Diagnosis:  Vertebrae: 27-28. Easily distinguished from all congeners by having a unique color pattern of male, consisting of dark gray bars on flank, the three anteriormost bars distinctively darker and narrower than posterior ones. Differs from A. carvalhoi by having more anal-fin rays in male (23-26 vs. 21-22), longer anal-fin base length (38.1-40.9% SL vs. 31.4-35.1% SL) and more caudal-fin rays (28-29 vs. 25-26). Urogenital papilla of male not attached to anal fin, pelvic fins not united medially, 22-24 dorsal-fin rays in male and 16-18 in female, 18-19 anal-fin rays in female and 28-30 scales in the longitudinal series (Ref. 54764).
Biology:  The type specimens were collected in a temporary lagoon with shallow water (maximum depth about 1.5 m) and vegetation composed mainly of grasses, Nymphaea sp., Lutwigia sp., and a large volume of filamentous algae (Ref. 54764).
IUCN Red List Status: Vulnerable (VU); Date assessed: 07 November 2018 (D2) Ref. (130435)
Threat to humans:  harmless


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