A new, uniquely colored species of the loricariid catfish genus Otocinclus, O. cocama is described from a tributary to the lower río Ucayali in northern Peru. The new species is distinguished from other Otocinclus species by two putatively autapomorphic features, the distinct color pattern, consisting of vertically elongated blotches spanning from the dorsal midline to the ventral border of flanks, and by a complete lateral line. The phylogenetic relationships of the new species are investigated and it is apparently more closely related to a clade formed by O. huaorani, O. bororo, O. mariae, and O. mura. Comments on the impact of taxonomic revisions for the discovery and description of previously undetected biodiversity are also presented.
Systematics; Taxonomy; South America; Neotropical; Loricarioidei; Loricariidae; Phylogeny
