American pike tetra
American pike tetra | ||||||||||||
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Ctenolucius hujeta |
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Scientific name | ||||||||||||
Ctenoluciidae | ||||||||||||
Schultz , 1944 |
American pike tetra (Ctenoluciidae) are predatory fish from the order of the tetra (Characiformes).
distribution
They live in northern South America and southern Central America. The five species of the genus Boulengerella live in the Amazon , in the Orinoco , in the Rio Tocantins , in the rivers of the three Guyanas and in eastern and central Panama to the province of Veraguas . The two Ctenolucius species occur in the rivers of Panama that flow into the Pacific , in the rivers of western and northern Colombia such as the Río Magdalena , and in freshwater lagoons on Lake Maracaibo in Venezuela .
features
American pike tetra have an elongated, cylindrical body. The scales are small. They are gray in color, with brown streaks or spots, or silvery. They become 22 to about 68 centimeters long. The dorsal and anal fin are, typical for shock predators, far back. The pelvic fins have eight fin rays . The fish have an adipose fin . Its mouth is elongated and has numerous teeth pointing backwards.
Way of life
American pike tetra live gregariously as young fish, solitary as old animals. They prefer to stay on the surface of the water and feed on insect larvae, crustaceans and smaller fish as shock predators.
Systematics
- American pike tetra family (Ctenoluciidae)
- Genus Boulengerella
- Boulengerella cuvieri
- Striped pike tetra ( Boulengerella lateristriga )
- Cuvier's pike tetra ( Boulengerella lucius )
- Spotted pike tetra ( Boulengerella maculata )
- Boulengerella xyrekes
- Genus Ctenolucius
- Gavial pike tetra ( Ctenolucius beani )
- Hujeta pike tetra ( Ctenolucius hujeta )
- Genus Boulengerella
literature
- Joseph S. Nelson : Fishes of the World , John Wiley & Sons, 2006, ISBN 0-471-25031-7 .
Web links
- American pike tetra on Fishbase.org (English)