Hoplisoma sp. CW133 "Moth"

This species has no formal scientific name. It comes from the Rio Abunã, a river that marks the border between Bolivia and Brazil in the southwestern Amazon - a region facing some of the fastest-accelerating deforestation on the continent. Bolivia's forest loss has increased by over 250% in the past decade, and in 2022 the country ranked third globally for primary forest loss.¹ The pressure comes primarily from agricultural expansion, with rivers and their tributaries caught in the path of that conversion. An undescribed fish in a rapidly degrading watershed is a species that may not get a formal description before its range is gone.

The fish you're looking at were bred here in Eugene, Oregon - not collected from the wild. Building a captive population now means there's something to fall back on regardless of what happens to the habitat.

1. Global Canopy. The hidden crisis of deforestation in Bolivia. (2023).