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CHARACINS

CHARACINAE SUB-FAMILY: Acestrorhynchus sp. [Freshwater Barracuda]
The following pictures are the property of Tom Lorenz who generously allowed me to post them on mongabay.com.


Acestrorhynchus falcatus (three of them)
Copyright Tom Lorenz 2002.
http://pictures.care2.com/view/2/979941326


Acestrorhynchus isalinae
Copyright Tom Lorenz 2002.
http://pictures.care2.com/view/2/327049006


Acestrorhynchus falcirostris
Copyright Tom Lorenz 2002
http://pictures.care2.com/view/2/830545923


Freshwater Barracuda, Spotted Cachorro
Acestrorhynchus falcatus
SYN: Hydrogon falcatus, Xiphoramphus falcatus, Xiphorhynchus falcatus
PD: A somewhat elongated fish that has a large mouth and eyes. Its body is silver in color. The dorsal fin is located far back on the body and stands tall. Its tail is forked and has a large black spot at its base. The other fins are transparent. Sometimes a black horizontal line, that runs from the eye to the tail spot, develops.
SIZE: To 10" (25 cm)
SS: Other Acestrorhynchus species.
HAB: South America; found in the Amazon Basin and the Paraguay River watershed.
S: middle, top
TANK: 48" (122 cm) or 55 gallons (209 L) is minimal. The tank should be spacious with plenty of open swimming areas. Provide a cover of floating plants to dim the lighting. Use a tight-fitting cover as this fish is known to jump. The tank should be heavily planted.
WATER: pH 5.8-7.5 (6.9), 4-15 dH (10), 79-86°F (26-30°C)
SB: Will eat smaller fish. A schooling fish that should be either keep singly or in groups of 6 or more. If kept in groups of 2-5 fish, fighting will occur.
SC: Pimelodids, large Loricarids, Pacus, Piranhas, Silver Dollars, Arawana
FOOD: Live: mostly fish; earthworms, aquatic insects, Tubifex ; pellets; chopped meat.
SEX: Females are plumper.
B: Unsuccessful in captivity
BP: 10. This fish has not been bred in captivity.
R: Little is known about these fish, even though they are frequently sold in aquarium stores. Acestrorhynchus nasutus is distinguishable from Acestrorhynchus falcatus by its more slender body and the absence of a black spot behind the gill cover. This species is often referred to as a "Freshwater Barracuda" because of its body form, not because of any relationship to the true marine Barracuda. An important food fish in South America.
DC: 6. A large and aggressive fish that requires a diet including live foods.


Slender Freshwater Barracuda, Big-eyed Cachorro
Acestrorhynchus falcirostris
SYN: Hydrogon falcirostris, Xiphoramphus falcirostris, Xiphorhynchus falcirostris
PD: A slender, elongated fish that has a large mouth and eyes. It body ranges from yellow to silver while its belly is white. The dorsal fin is located far back on the body and stands tall. Its tail is forked with yellow marking and a black spot can be found at its base. The other fins are transparent.
SIZE: To 16" (40 cm)
SS: Other Acestrorhynchus species.
HAB: South America; northern Amazon Basin
S: middle, top
TANK: 60" (150 cm) or 90-plus gallons (342 L). See A. falcatus for other specifications.
WATER: pH 6-7.5 (7.0), 8-16 dH (12), 75-82°F (24-28°C)
SB: As for Acestrorhynchus falcatus
SC: A. falcatus
FOOD: Live: mostly fish; earthworms, aquatic insects, Tubifex ; pellets; chopped meat.
SEX: Females are plumper.
B: Unsuccessful in captivity
BP: 10. No success in spawning this fish has been reported
R: See Acestrorhynchus falcatus. This species is not an aquarium fish.
DC: 7. A large and aggressive fish that requires a diet including live foods.



Recent news

New Yangtze River dam could doom more endangered species

(06/22/2009) Eight Chinese environmentalists and scientists have composed a letter warning that a new dam under consideration for the Yangtze River could lead to the extinction of several endangered species. The letter contends that Xiaonanhia Dam, which would be 30 kilometers upstream from the city of Chongqing, will negatively impact the river’s only fish reserve. Spanning 400 kilometers in the upper Yangtze, the reserve is home to 180 fish species, including the Endangered Chinese sturgeon, and the Critically Endangered Chinese paddlefish, as well as the finless porpoise.


Fish take less than a decade to evolve

(06/22/2009) Evolution is often thought of being a slow-process, taking thousands, if not millions, of years. However a new study in The American Naturalist found that Trinidadian guppies underwent evolution in just eight years, or thirty generations. Less than a decade ago Swanne Gordon, a graduate student at UC Riverside, and her team introduced Trinidadian guppies into the Damier River in the Caribbean island of Trinidad. They placed the guppies above a waterfall to allow them to flourish in a largely predator-free environment.


Madfish?: scientist warns that farmed fish could be a source of mad cow disease

(06/17/2009) In a paper that shows just how strange our modern world has become, Robert P. Friedland, neurologist from the University of Louisville, warns that farmed fish could be at risk of Creutzfeldt Jakob disease, or mad cow disease.


New report predicts dire consequences for every U.S. region from global warming

(06/17/2009) Government officials and scientists released a 196 page report detailing the impact of global warming on the U.S. yesterday. The study, commissioned in 2007 during the Bush Administration, found that every region of the U.S. faces large-scale consequences due to climate change, including higher temperatures, increased droughts, heavier rainfall, more severe weather, water shortages, rising sea levels, ecosystem stresses, loss of biodiversity, and economic impacts.


Will jellyfish take over the world?

(06/16/2009) It could be a plot of a (bad) science-fiction film: a man-made disaster creates spawns of millions upon millions of jellyfish which rapidly take over the ocean. Humans, starving for mahi-mahi and Chilean seabass, turn to jellyfish, which becomes the new tuna (after the tuna fishery has collapsed, of course). Fish sticks become jelly-sticks, and fish-and-chips becomes jelly-and-chips. The sci-fi film could end with the ominous image of a jellyfish evolving terrestrial limbs and pulling itself onto land—readying itself for a new conquest.


Marine scientist calls for abstaining from seafood to save oceans

(06/08/2009) In April marine scientist Jennifer Jacquet made the case on her blog Guilty Planet that people should abstain from eating seafood to help save life in the ocean. With fish populations collapsing worldwide and scientists sounding warnings that ocean ecosystems—as edible resources—have only decades left, it is perhaps surprising that Jacquet’s call to abstain from consuming seafood is a lone voice in the wilderness, but thus far few have called for seafood lovers to abstain.



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Copyright Rhett Butler 1994-2009

The copy for fish.mongabay.com was written in 1994-1995. Therefore some information such as scientific names may be out of date. For this, I apologize. Feel free to send corrections to me.