Taxonomy & naming
Scobinancistrus raonii was described in 2023 by Chaves, Oliveira, Gonçalves, Sousa and Rapp Py-Daniel in Neotropical Ichthyology (volume 21, number 3, article e230038). It is placed in the subfamily Hypostominae and is recognised as valid in the Catalog of Fishes (Eschmeyer, CAS; species id 77484).
The specific epithet raonii honours Cacique Raoni Metuktire, the prominent indigenous Kayapó leader and environmental advocate associated with the Xingu region — a fitting dedication for a fish from the Xingu basin. The genus name Scobinancistrus derives from Scobina (Latin, a rasp or file), referencing the rasp-like teeth, combined with the ancistrine lineage to which it belongs.
Morphology
Scobinancistrus raonii reaches a maximum recorded length of about 5 in standard length. The body is elongated with an oval cross-section, clad in the bony armour characteristic of the genus.
Its most distinctive feature is the colour pattern: large, yellow, irregularly shaped and widely spaced spots cover the entire body, each spot larger than the pupil diameter. Unlike some congeners, it lacks a yellow distal band on the dorsal and caudal fins. Diagnostic meristics include two dorsal-fin spines, seven dorsal soft rays, four anal soft rays, and 31–32 vertebrae; the caudal peduncle measures 11.7–13.5% of standard length. In specimens larger than 3 in SL, the last dorsal-fin ray does not reach the adipose plate when adpressed — a feature used to separate it from related species. No sexual dimorphism has been described in the consulted sources.
Habitat
The species is endemic to the Xingu River basin in Brazil, South America. It is a demersal, tropical freshwater fish. Specific water-chemistry measurements for its localities are not reported in the consulted sources; the Xingu is broadly characterised by clear, warm, well-oxygenated waters, but no figures are asserted here beyond the published record.
Feeding
Members of the genus Scobinancistrus are wood-associated, omnivorous rasping plecos that graze biofilm and detritus from submerged surfaces with their file-like teeth. No species-specific stomach-content study has been published for S. raonii, so a precise diet is not claimed; its feeding is presumed to follow the generalist rasping pattern of the genus.
Mating
No data on courtship or mating behaviour have been published for Scobinancistrus raonii.
Breeding
No breeding records or reproductive data are available for this species, either from the wild or in captivity.
In the aquarium
Scobinancistrus raonii is a very recently described species and is not established in the aquarium hobby; FishBase lists it as of no interest to fisheries. No husbandry, tankmate, or water-parameter recommendations are published for it. Aquarists familiar with other Xingu plecos would note that the genus generally requires clean, warm, well-oxygenated water and driftwood, but no species-specific guidance exists.
Conservation
Scobinancistrus raonii has not been evaluated by the IUCN Red List (status: Not Evaluated), nor under CITES, reflecting its recent 2023 description. As a Xingu endemic, it inhabits a basin under significant pressure from hydroelectric development (notably the Belo Monte complex), though no species-specific assessment of threats or population trends has been published.