Taxonomy & naming
Farlowella wuyjugu was formally described by Dopazo, Wosiacki and Britto in 2023 in Neotropical Ichthyology (volume 21, number 1, article e220097). The Catalog of Fishes (Eschmeyer, CAS) recognises it as a valid species (spid 77305). It belongs to the genus Farlowella, the twig or whiptail catfishes, within the subfamily Loricariinae of the armoured catfish family Loricariidae.
The species is distinguished from its congeners by a naked gular region (the underside of the head between the gill openings lacks bony plates, where most Farlowella have plates there) and by bearing five lateral series of plate rows on the anterior body rather than the four typical of the genus. These armour characters formed the core of the original diagnosis.
The type material was collected in the rio Tapajos basin, Para, Brazil. As a species described only in 2023, its placement within the broader phylogeny of Farlowella has not yet been the subject of dedicated molecular study, and no synonyms are recognised.
Morphology
Farlowella wuyjugu reaches a maximum recorded size of about 5.5 in standard length (the largest measured specimen, sex undetermined). The body is eel-like and extremely elongate, with the rostrum drawn out into the long pointed snout characteristic of the genus — the feature that gives twig catfishes their convincing resemblance to a submerged stick.
The diagnostic armour features are the naked gular region on the underside of the head and the five lateral series of plate rows on the anterior body (versus four in related species). Detailed colour-in-life data, fin-ray counts beyond the original description, and the full range of size and proportion are not elaborated in the available sources.
No information on sexual dimorphism has been published for this species. In Farlowella generally, breeding males develop odontodes (small dermal teeth) along the expanded sides of the snout, but whether and how this expresses in F. wuyjugu has not been recorded.
Habitat
The species is known only from the rio Tapajos basin in Para state, Brazil, where the type material was taken from a small forest creek. It is a freshwater, demersal fish of tropical lowland streams.
Beyond the note that it inhabits a small forest creek, specific water-chemistry measurements (temperature, pH, conductivity) and detailed microhabitat descriptions are not published. Twig catfishes as a group favour clear, well-oxygenated flowing water with submerged wood, leaf litter and marginal vegetation against which their cryptic form provides camouflage; whether F. wuyjugu follows this pattern is plausible but not documented for the species itself.
Feeding
Farlowella wuyjugu has a low trophic level of about 2.5, consistent with a diet dominated by aufwuchs — the film of algae, biofilm, microorganisms and fine detritus that coats submerged surfaces. Like other twig catfishes, it almost certainly grazes this layer from wood, rocks and plant stems using its ventral sucker-mouth.
No direct gut-content or feeding observations specific to this species have been published. The trophic estimate is the only quantitative dietary indicator available.
Mating
No data on courtship or mating behaviour have been published for Farlowella wuyjugu. The species has been known to science only since 2023 and has not, to date, been the subject of any reproductive study or aquarium breeding report.
Breeding
No breeding data have been published for this species. Farlowella as a genus are typically substrate egg-layers in which the male guards a clutch deposited on a firm surface such as wood, a leaf or aquarium glass, but no spawning, clutch size, incubation or parental-care information specific to F. wuyjugu exists in the literature.
In the aquarium
There is no documented aquarium history for Farlowella wuyjugu, which is known only from its type locality and has not entered the ornamental trade in any traceable way. Twig catfishes in general are delicate, requiring pristine, well-oxygenated water, abundant aufwuchs or supplementary vegetable foods, and freedom from boisterous tankmates, but no care information specific to this species can be stated. No data published.
Conservation
Farlowella wuyjugu has not been evaluated for the IUCN Red List (status Not Evaluated). As a species described only in 2023 and known from a single small forest creek in the rio Tapajos basin, its true range, population size and any threats are unknown.
The Tapajos basin faces broad pressures from deforestation, agricultural expansion and proposed hydroelectric development, which could affect narrowly distributed stream fishes. However, no formal assessment of this species' conservation status has been conducted, and any statement of risk would be speculative until its distribution is better understood.