Working on a number of projects, I’ve been given the opportunity to photograph some unusual Amazonian aquatic wildlife over the past few years. I’d like to thank Ornamental Fish Inc., FL, USA and I. and E. Zimerman of River Wonders, CA, USA for allowing me the opportunities to shoot some of the fish involved. In particular, the deep water wildlife has been spectacular.
As with all of my images posted here, they are for your enjoyment and are not public domain, all are copyrighted. Please do not copy, download, post online, or reuse in any fashion the photographs that I have posted without express written permission to do so. Any use of my images must be approved in writing. To access the images I have posted, you must click on the subject heading link above. By doing so, your action serves as legal recognition of my stated copyright restrictions, it signifies your willingness to use the images only after written permission is provided, and it acknowledges that failure to follow the rules is a violation of international copyright law. Thank you for your cooperation.
Sexual dimorphism is highlighted in this species of Pseudancistrus. Males have the rigid spines on their faces, females do not.
The stark pattern of the Zebra Plecostomus (Hypancistrus zebra) has made it popular among aquarists.
The teeth of the Black Piranha (Serrasalmus rhombeus) are impressive.
One of the largest freshwater fish in the world is the Arapaima (Arapaima gigas). Intense fishing pressures have reduced local populations across much of the species’ range.
This is a juvenile Brachyplatystoma vaillanti, a species that can attain lengths of 4 to 5 feet. Unfortunately for this catfish, its meat is prized and a tremendous harvest pressure has decreased population sizes. It is known as the Laulao catfish.
The Cetopsid catfishes can be aggressive and predatory fish. Some species inhabit deeper waters. This is Cetopsis coecutiens.
While the Amazon is not the deepest river in the world, it does have regions that exceed 300 feet in depth. Not surprisingly, there is a community of deep water fish living in the Amazon that are as strange in appearance as the deep water marine fishes. Orthosternarchus tamandua is a knifefish that inhabits deeper waters of the Amazon.
Orthosternarchus tamandua has reduced eyes.
The reduced eye is the black spot to the upper left hand corner of the image. The dark spot in the middle of the image appears to be vestige pigmentation.
The “Duck-Billed Knifefish" is an electric fish from the family Apteronotidae. It is another deep water fish from the Amazon River. Little is known of its biology or ecology.
This Duck-Billed Knifefish has an uncurved mouth.
The face of a Duck-Billed Knifefish.
As with Orthosternarchus tamandua, the eyes of the Duck-Billed Knifefish are reduced.
May 28th, 2009 at 5:21 pm
Thanks for writing, I really liked your newest post. I think you should post more often, you obviously have natural ability for blogging!
July 7th, 2009 at 12:53 am
Absolutely fantastic images of these most unusual fishes! What a delight your blog is to vicariously enjoy your travels! keep it up Dante!
Rob
July 8th, 2009 at 10:37 am
Hi Rob,
The deep water fish fauna, both oceanic and freshwater, amaze me. I have also been captivated by the parallels between deep freshwater fish and subterranean fish. I have really enjoyed photographing all of them. With any luck, I’ll have a few more to post here before too long. Thanks!
Dante
September 13th, 2009 at 11:04 pm
Thanks very much for that imformative entry.