Chaetostoma bifurcum Lujan, Meza-Vargas, Astudillo-Clavijo, Barriga-Salazar & López-Fernández 2015

Chaetostoma bifurcum is distinguished from all congeners along along the Pacific Coast of South America except C. palmeri and C. paucispinis by having only 1 or 2 evertible cheek odontodes (vs. 3-6); from C. niveum, C. palmeri, C. patiae, and C. paucispinis by having most frequently 4 branched rays on anal fin (vs. 5); from C. palmeri and C. paucispinis by having body with black, indistinct, vertically elongate, irregularly broken or complete bars K to O width of orbit in living adults (vs. body uniform or with transverse cross-bars wider than two times orbit centered on dorsal midline); and from C. paucispinis by having 8 branched rays on dorsal fin (vs. 9) (Ref. 104727).Description: Dorsal-fin branched rays 8; anal-fin branched rays 4-5; pectoral-fin branched rays 6; pelvic-fin branched rays 5 (Ref. 104727).

Found in piedmont elevations approximately 100 to 650 masl (Ref. 104727).

Chaetostoma bifurcum is a species of catfish in the family Loricariidae. It is a freshwater fish native to South America, where it is found in the Pacific coastal drainages of Ecuador and Peru, including the basins of the Esmeraldas River, the Guayas River, the Santa Rosa River, and the Tumbes River. It inhabits regions of foothills at an elevation of 100 to 650 m (328 to 2133 ft) above sea level. The species reaches 14 cm (5.5 inches) SL.