Piranha Species
Piranhas are native South America. They are found in Venezuela and south through Brazil inhabiting the Amazon basin and other warm lowland streams and lakes east of the Andes. In Venezuela they are also known as the Caribe.
The Piranhas belong to a sub-family called the Serrasalminae, or the ‘serrated salmon family’. This is derived from the latin terms of ‘serra’ which means 'saw', 'sawed' or 'serrated', and ‘salmus’ which means 'salmon'. This name is based on the fact that all members of this subfamily have a sharp, serrated keel running over the belly to make the body more streamlined, for faster swimming.
The Serrasalminae sub-family is comprised of about 17 genera, with about sixty species. The smaller members of this sub-family are about palm-sized overall, while the largest Pacus can grow to about 3 feet and weigh about 66 pounds (30 kg). These include not only the Piranha, but also the Pacu and the Silver Dollar.
Piranha fish species are members of 5 genera:
- Pygocentrus
The Pygocentrus are known as the "True Piranha's" or “Caribe”.
(Described by J. P. Müller and Troschel in 1844) - Serrasalmus
The Serrasalmus are often referred to as "Pirambeba's".
(Described by Lacepède in 1803) - Pristobrycon
The Pristobrycon are often referred to as "Pirambeba's".
(Described by C. H. Eigenmann in 1915) - Pygopristis
The Pristobrycon are often referred to as "Pirambeba's
(Described by G. Cuvier in 1819) - Catoprion
The Catoprion genus contains the Wimple Piranha. It was not traditionally considered to be a true piranha, but though molecular analysis, it is now suggested that it is.
(Described by G. Cuvier in 1819)
There is a lot of confusion concerning the proper scientific classification of the different species across all the genera. One reason is because of the similarity between a numbers of species and so there are frequent shifts in classification. There are also recent discoveries of a number of new species or subspecies. All this makes proper identification and classification an even more difficult enterprise.
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