Scientific name Erythrinidae Rank Family | Phylum Chordata Superfamily Erythrinoidea Higher classification Characiformes | |
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Lower classifications Hoplias malabaricus, Hoplias aimara |
The Erythrinidae are a family of fishes found in rivers and other freshwater habitats from Costa Rica south as far as Argentina. They are common and are caught with hooks by fishermen, partially because of their voracious behaviour. They are sometimes called trahiras or tarariras.
![Erythrinidae Panoramio Photo of Hoplias sp Erythrinidae](https://alchetron.com/cdn/erythrinidae-8a24429b-e1d1-459c-accc-3c816bd9046-resize-750.jpeg)
The Erythrinidae include cylindrical fish with blunt heads, and prey on other fish. They can reach lengths up to 90 cm (35 in). Some species can breathe air, enabling them to survive in water low in oxygen, and even to move over land between ponds.
![Erythrinidae Characiformes Erythrinidae Fisheries Media Gallery](https://alchetron.com/cdn/erythrinidae-8bab4c7b-ddd1-4928-b5f7-5ac055ef807-resize-750.jpeg)
Species
The 16 species are contained in three genera:
![Erythrinidae ERYTHRINIDAE TRAHIRAS FAUNA PARAGUAY](https://alchetron.com/cdn/erythrinidae-7d374003-dc3a-4001-a2fa-d712619c235-resize-750.jpeg)
![Erythrinidae Characiformes Erythrinidae Trara Hoplias malabaricus Flickr](https://alchetron.com/cdn/erythrinidae-4091ab09-f501-4717-af00-519ab608afc-resize-750.jpeg)
![Erythrinidae httpsuploadwikimediaorgwikipediacommons99](https://alchetron.com/cdn/erythrinidae-1d798b0d-422d-43ba-be66-9d27cc3ef17-resize-750.jpg)
References
Erythrinidae Wikipedia(Text) CC BY-SA