Characins: Characiformes - Physical Characteristics, Giant Tigerfish (hydrocynus Goliath): Species Accounts, Red-bellied Piranha (pygocentrus Nattereri): Species Accounts - GEOGRAPHIC RANGE, HABITAT, DIET, BEHAVIOR AND REPRODUCTION, CHARACINS AND PEOPLE,

GIANT TIGERFISH (Hydrocynus goliath): SPECIES ACCOUNTS
RED-BELLIED PIRANHA (Pygocentrus nattereri): SPECIES ACCOUNTS
RIVER HATCHETFISH (Gasteropelecus sternicla): SPECIES ACCOUNTS

GEOGRAPHIC RANGE

Characins live all over Central America, South America, and Africa. In North America they live only in Mexico and southern Texas.

HABITAT

Characins inhabit all types of freshwater, including weedy river edges, still ponds, rushing streams, and even underground caves.

DIET

Most characins eat fish. Some eat invertebrates (in-VER-teh-brehts), or animals that lack a backbone. Some eat only plants, fruits, and seeds. Some eat plankton, very small microscopic (MY-kro-SKA-pihk) plants and animals drifting in the water. Some feed on waste material, mud, and algae (AL-jee), tiny plantlike growths that live in water and have no true roots, stems, or leaves. Some eat the scales or pieces of fins of other fishes.

BEHAVIOR AND REPRODUCTION

Some characins form schools when they are young but become solitary (SA-le-TER-ee) and travel alone as adults. Some travel in large groups during all life stages. When injured by a predator (PREH-duh-ter), or an animal that hunts and kills other animals for food, characins release a substance that warns others in the school to escape. Most characins scatter their eggs into the water and do not tend the eggs or the young, but some build nests.

CHARACINS AND PEOPLE

Many characins are popular aquarium fishes. Others are important as food. Some are popular for sport fishing.

CONSERVATION STATUS

The World Conservation Union (IUCN) lists one characin as Endangered, or facing a very high risk of extinction in the wild in the near future.