Serrasalmus hastatus

Fink and Machado-Allison 2001

S. hastatus, specimen collected from the Rio Branco & Rio Negro intersection.

 

 

 

 

 

INTRODUCTION

Recommend keeping as solitary species in home aquarium. Presently no information on care in the aquarium. It can be assumed the species behavior is probably the same as S. altuvei and S. compressus. Very likely a fin biter. I will attempt to collect more data as the fish becomes more available. S. hastatus (left) photo courtesy of Dr. William L. Fink. Serrasalmus hastatus is a new species of piranhas from Brazil. It is highly compressed, deep bodied fish and described from the Rio Branco and Rio Negro of Brazil. It also resembles several species of deep bodied, compressed Serrasalmus that have dorsoventrally elongate belly serrae (Fink and Machado-Allison 2001). These species include S. altispinis, S. altuvei, S. compressus, and S. geryi. 

Picture courtesy of Dr. William L. Fink

The species differs from these species in having a much straighter dorsal head profile and in having thin, vertically elongate spots and stripes (Fink and Machado-Allison, 2001).  The other species listed above have much more rounded spots on the body. Also, this species does not have distinct stripe along the head, under the mouth  to the top of the dorsal fin, like S. geryi. There is overlap with S. compressus in terms of the distance of the head to the top of the dorsal profile. The jaw and gill area where it is joined, is shorter distance where the pectoral fin inserts which helps distinguish this species from S. compressus and S. altuvei. Large adults of S. altuvei sometimes show fainted spots forming short vertical stripes, but they are shorter and much less numerous than the vertical stripes of S. hastatus.

Color of Life

The entire body is bright silver, with bluish overtones. The eye is bluish silver, with darker grey-blue pigments dorsal and ventral to the pupil. The vertical fins are hyaline, but with pigment.

Measurements (meristic features)

  1. Vertebrae: (37-38) Average; 37.2

  2. Pre-Pelvic Serrae: (19-21) Average; 20.0

  3. Serrae: (7-8) Average 7.6

  4. Branched Anal Fin Rays: (31-34) Average; 32.8

  5. Branched Dorsal Fin Rays: (15-17) Average; 16.0

ETYMOLOGY

The name is derived from the Latin, hastatus, spear-shaped, referring to the pointed and highly compressed snout. (FINK,  MACHADO-ALLISON, 2001)

DISTRIBUTION

Described from the lower Rio Negro drainage, Both the Marara beach and Maguari flooded forest, from the mouth of the Rio Branco, Rio Uraricoera, Rio Solimoes near Manaus. Distribution; Rio Negro, basin. Brazil.

Contributors and Advisors

Fink, William L.

REFERENCES 

  1. Fink, W. L. and A. Machado-Allison   2001 (16 Mar.) Serrasalmus hastatus, a new species of piranha from Brazil, with comments on Serrasalmus altuvei and Serrasalmus compressus (Teleostei: Characiformes). Occas. Pap. Mus. Zool. Univ. Mich. No. 730: 1-18.

  2. Machado-Allison, Antonio., Fink, William., 1996 Los Peces Caribes de Venezuela, Diagnosis, Claves, Aspectos Ecologicos Y Evolutivos.

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UPDATED: 06/10/2007