With four species currently described, the genus Liposarcus is fairly easy to summarize. L. multiradiatus and L. pardalis are sometimes available in the hobby under the catch-all name “Plecostomus”. They are relatively unremarkably colored, grow very large (around 50 cm), and are cultivated in ponds as food fishes: Liposarcusmeans “fat flesh”. By contrast the species L. anisitsi is renowned as the “Snowking Pleco” because of its splendid coloration. This species too attains a length of 50-60 cm. Aquarium Glaser has now imported a new species from Peru.
There does exist a fourth species, namely Liposarcus disjunctivus. The specific name “disjunctivus” means ”with a different distribution“. While L. multiradiatus and L. pardalis are spread over wide areas in South America, there are only very few confirmed places in Peru where L. disjunctivus has been found so far. The main difference between L. disjunctivus and its congeneers is the coloration of the belly. All other species have a spotted belly, only L. disjunctivus has a worm-like pattern. This could mean that the recently imported ”Snowking“ actually belongs to that species. It has been collected in the Madre de Dios river near by Puerto Maldonado. So the new „Snowking Pleco“ represents either a new population of Liposarcus disjunctivus or a new species. In any case it is a breathtaking beautiful fish…
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