Nannostomus mortenthaleri, commonly known as the coral red pencilfish, is a freshwater species of fish belonging to the characin family Lebiasinidae.[4] It is one of the most colourful of the genus, being suffused with a bright coral red colouration over its entire body and fins, in striking contrast to its horizontal jet black stripes. It was originally described as a subspecies of Nannostomus marginatus, but it is now recognised as a species in its own right.[3] Mature males have a thickened anal fin. Maximum length is 29mm.[3]
| Nannostomus mortenthaleri | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Characiformes |
| Family: | Lebiasinidae |
| Genus: | Nannostomus |
| Species: | N. mortenthaleri |
| Binomial name | |
| Nannostomus mortenthaleri Paepke & Arendt, 2001[2] | |
| Synonyms | |
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The fish is named in honor of aquarium-fish exporter Martin Mortenthaler (1961-2018), the owner of Aquarium Rio Momon SRL in Iquitos, Peru, who collected the type specimen.[5]
Distribution
Its distribution is fairly restricted to date; it has only been recorded from a small tributary of the Nanay River, and possibly the Tigre River, Peru.[3]