Article © Jake, uploaded December 24, 2024.

About a year ago my LFS finally got some "giant otos" in, and while checking them out I noticed that one was different from the others. I know the employees by name and they were happy to let me pick out the one I wanted. I also got some of the other standard giant otos which seem to be Hypoptopoma gulare Cope, 1878.

When I first got this fish I had a 50 gallon planted tank, but I've since upgraded to an 80 gallon tank with plenty of driftwood and live plants. The tank is kept at 78°F with a pH of around 7.5. I have tried feeding this fish (as well as my standard giant otos) zucchini, green beans, kale, and Repashy. However, I had no luck. It seems to get what it needs from grazing on algae, wood, and plants. I do occasionally add BacterAE to this tank, and my hope is that it helps food grow on the surfaces. This fish, similar to standard giant otos, is most likely to hang out near the outflow of my canister filter, where they are in the flow, and it's more likely to come to the front glass once the lights are off.

After keeping the fish for a while, I've noticed both physical and behavioural differences between this fish and the standard giant otos.

Behaviourally, this species is a bit more active than H. gulare. I'm more likely to catch it swimming around in that 'sharky' way that many catfish do. It won't actively greet or approach me, but it's more likely to be moving around the tank than my H. gulare. When this fish is 'parked' it is more likely to have its dorsal and tail fins proudly extended (this makes photographing this fish pretty satisfying). Also, this fish likes to munch on certain plants! Occasionally I will see it chewing through its favourite Echinodorus plant in my tank. It will leave little caterpillar-esque munches in the leaves of the plant.

Physically, this fish looks almost as if the H. gulare was crossed with a zebra oto (O. cocama). It has a flatter, more concave forehead than the standard giant otos, and its eyes (which could not be further apart) bulge out the sides of the head. In profile, its head is somewhat reminiscent of a high-heeled shoe. I love the pattern on this fish so much more than the normal giant otos. Where the scales on the giant oto look more pronounced, this fish has a smooth brown body interspersed with white/cream markings (like chocolate with vanilla accents). Its dorsal fin is also unique with a dark splotch at the base, and the front/top edge of the fin seems to be darker than the normal giant otos as well.

Copyright information for the images used in this article can be found on the species' full Cat-eLog page.

Cat-eLog Data Sheet
Scientific Name	Hypoptopoma sp. (1)
Common Name	Flat Head Dwarf Sucker
Pronunciation	hi POP toe po mah
Etymology	Hypoptopoma is derived from hypos (low position, below). piptein (depressed). poma (cheek)
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Species Information
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Identification	Hypoptopoma are small(ish) loricariids with a stocky body with a wide, flattened, head with the eyes on the side of the head and a concave profile, with a normal (not extremely thin) tail.
Habitat Information
Distribution	Amazon, Upper Amazon, Nanay (click on these areas to find other species found there) Login to view the map.
Husbandry Information
Breeding	Unreported.
Breeding Reports	There is no breeding report.
Further Information
Registered Keepers	There are 2 registered keepers, view all "my cats" data.
Wishlists	Love this species? Click the heart to add it to your wish list. There is but a single wish to keep this species, see who wants what.
Spotters	Spotted this species somewhere? Click the binoculars! There are 3 records of this fish being seen, view them all.
Forum BBCode
	Search for H. sp. (1)
	Look up H. sp. (1) on AquaticRepublic.com
	LFS label creator ARN ref:1.4.56.127
Last Update	-1 Nov 30 00:00 (species record created: 2024 Dec 24 06:28)

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