Hypostomus khimaera Tencatt, Zawadzki & Froehlich 2014

Hypostomus khimaera can be diagnosed from all congeners, except those belonging to the H. cochliodon group, by having the following unique combination of characters: absence of notch between metapterygoid and hyomandibula (vs. presence of notch); and strongly angled dentaries, less than 80° (vs. shallow angle between dentaries, generally more than 80°). It differs from all members of the H. cochliodon group, except from H. basilisko and H. soniae, by the presence of a dark tan stripe along the flank (vs. absence). It can be distinguished from H. basilisko and H. soniae by having black spots on the body and fins or at least in one of these (vs. absence of spots). In addition, it can be further separated from H. basilisko by having moderately developed keels (vs. highly developed keels) and 28 vertebrae (vs. 27); and from H. cochliodon by having 12-27 teeth (vs. 7-9), externalized opercle, exposed region easily visible (vs. almost entire internalized opercle, exposed region not easily visible; and 28 vertebrae (vs. 29) (Ref. 97225).

Dorsal spines (total): 2; Dorsal soft rays (total): 7; Analsoft rays: 5

Syntopic with Hypostomus cochliodon in several localities of rio Paraguay basin. Commonly found in small streams than in larger streams. Generally collected along themargins of deeper sites with sandy bottoms in the rio Aquidauana basin streams (Ref. 97225).

Hypostomus khimaera is a species of catfish in the family Loricariidae. It is native to South America, where it occurs in the Paraguay River basin in Brazil. It is typically seen in small streams, including the Aquidauana River basin, where it is known from the margins of deeper, sandy areas. It is known to be syntopic with Hypostomus cochliodon in several parts of its range. The species reaches 16.4 cm (6.5 inches) SL and is believed to be a facultative air-breather. Its specific epithet, khimaera, derives from Greek and refers to the mythical chimera, as H. khimaera possesses features normally associated with multiple distinct species.