Classification / Names
Common names | Synonyms | Catalog of Fishes(genus, species) | ITIS | CoL | WoRMS | Cloffa
Teleostei (teleosts) >
Gymnotiformes (Knifefishes) >
Hypopomidae (Bluntnose knifefishes)
Etymology: Brachyhypopomus: Greek, brachys, eia = short + Greek, hypo = under + Greek, poma, -atos = cover (Ref. 45335); benjamini: Named for Benjamin T. D. Crampton, British diplomat and amateur ornithologist, collector of the holotype..
Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range
Ecology
Freshwater; benthopelagic. Tropical
South America: lower río Ucayali and río Nanay in Peru.
Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm ?  range ? - ? cm
Max length : 13.5 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 116763); 11.9 cm TL (female)
Short description
Identification keys | Morphology | Morphometrics
Anal soft rays: 174 - 197. Brachyhypopomus benjamini is distinguished from other species of the genus Brachyhypopomus by the absence of scales in middorsal region of anterior third of body (vs. presence in all congeners except B. provenzanoi) and by having speckled dorsal surface of body with small brown chromatophores on light brown background (vs. irregular pattern of distinct dark blotches on depigmented tan-colored background in B. provenzanoi).
Facultative air-breathing in the genus (Ref. 126274); Inhabits small low-conductivity blackwater terra firme rainforest streams. Found in and around submerged debris and leaf litter, and in root mats and holes along the stream banks. Feeds on small aquatic invertebrates in the type locality. Occurs sympatrically and syntopically with Brachyhypopomus beebei, B. brevirostris, B. sullivani, B. verdii, and B. walteri. Spawns during the rainy season, approximately December-April, in the area of the type locality (Ref. 116763).
Life cycle and mating behavior
Maturities | Reproduction | Spawnings | Egg(s) | Fecundities | Larvae
Crampton, W.G.R., C.D. de Santana, J.C. Waddell and N.R. Lovejoy, 2017. A taxonomic revision of the Neotropical electric fish genus Brachyhypopomus (Ostariophysi: Gymnotiformes: Hypopomidae), with descriptions of 15 new species. Neotrop. ichthyol. 14(4):e150146. (Ref. 116763)
IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435)
Threat to humans
Harmless
Human uses
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Estimates based on models
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref.
82804): PD
50 = 0.5000 [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.00380 (0.00145 - 0.00994), b=3.06 (2.83 - 3.29), in cm total length, based on LWR estimates for this (Sub)family-body shape (Ref.
93245).
Trophic level (Ref.
69278): 3.1 ±0.4 se; based on size and trophs of closest relatives
Fishing Vulnerability (Ref.
59153): Low vulnerability (10 of 100).