Doras

Doras is a genus of catfish that mainly inhabit tropical areas in South America. Though there is some uncertainty, the name Doras means either armor or dagger. This alludes to the fact that the fish in this group have sharp/thorny fins which can be called dagger-like and armor. This group of catfish vary in size from the smallest around 163mm to the largest which are around 550mm. On average these fishes are around 350 mm. (planetcatfish) There are five species within this genus; Doras carinatus, Doras higuchii, Doras micropoeus, Doras phlyzakion, and Doras zuanoni. Doras is a genus of catfish that mainly inhabit tropical areas in South America. Though there is some uncertainty, the name Doras means either armor or dagger. This alludes to the fact that the fish in this group have sharp/thorny fins which can be called dagger-like and armor. This group of catfish vary in size from the smallest around 163mm to the largest which are around 550mm. On average these fishes are around 350 mm. (planetcatfish) There are five species within this genus; Doras carinatus, Doras higuchii, Doras micropoeus, Doras phlyzakion, and Doras zuanoni. D. Carinatus was first discovered in Suriname (planetcatfish). This species is demersal, brackish, and live in freshwater. Within South America, D. Carinatus inhabit the Essequibo river basin and other coastal drainages east to mouth of Amazon River, possibly in the lower Amazon and lower Orinoco River basins. There are some forms of which inhabit the lower Amazon and lower Orinoco. They are tentatively identified as D. Carinatus and may represent one or more undescribed species. D. Carinatus can emit sounds by moving its pectoral spines. Each basic unit of sound emitted lasts for about 60-70 milliseconds and has a frequency of 60-90 Hertz which corresponds to the reply frequency of the muscles utilized. The maximum length of this fish is 30 cm (fishbase). D. Higuchii was first discovered in Rio Curuám (Iriri-Xingu Drainage), near the town of Castelo dos Sonhos in Brazil (planetcatfish). They are demersal fish that live freshwater areas. They inhabit lower Amazon tributaries. The maximum length of this species is 32.5 cm. D. Micropoeus was first discovered in Wismar, Guyana (planetcatfish). They are demersal fish that live in freshwater areas. They inhabit the Essequibo, Demerara, and Corantijn river basins and possibly other coastal drainages east to the mouth of the Amazon river. The maximum length of D. Micropoeus is 35 cm (fishbase).