Updated 3 Nov. 2024
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Acanthocharax Eigenmann 1912 resembling Charax but with an acanthus (L.), from ákantha (Gr. ἄκανθα), thorn, referring to strong spine on angle of preopercle

Acanthocharax microlepis Eigenmann 1912 micro-, from mikrós (Gr. μικρός), small; lepίs (Gr. λεπίς), scale, referring to small, imbricate scales, 47–53 along lateral line

Acestrocephalus Eigenmann 1910 akéstra (Gr. ἀκέστρα), darning needle; cephalus, from kephalḗ (Gr. κεφαλή), head, allusion not explained, perhaps referring to sharp (needle-like?) canine teeth of A. anomalus

Acestrocephalus acutus Menezes 2006 Latin for sharp or pointed, referring to “pointed nature” of snout

Acestrocephalus anomalus (Steindachner 1880) Latin for odd or irregular, allusion not explained, presumably referring to second row of teeth on front of lower jaw, which “differs strikingly” from presumed congeners in Xiphorhamphus (=Acestrorhynchus)

Acestrocephalus boehlkei Menezes 1977 in honor of American ichthyologist James E. Böhlke (1930–1982), Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, who made specimens under his care available for study

Acestrocephalus maculosus Menezes 2006 Latin for spotted, referring to dark spots and stripes on body

Acestrocephalus nigrifasciatus Menezes 2006 nigri, from niger (L.), black; fasciatus (L.), banded or striped, referring to dark lateral stripe on body

Acestrocephalus pallidus Menezes 2006 Latin for pale, referring to its overall body color

Acestrocephalus sardina (Fowler 1913) from sardinha, indigenous name for this species along the rio Madeira, Brazil

Acestrocephalus stigmatus Menezes 2006 Latin for marked or spotted, referring to dark spot on humeral region

Amazonichthys Esguícero & Mendonça 2023 Amazon, from Greek mythology, one of a race of warrior women, who, fighting with bows and arrows and forbidding the presence of men inside their tribe, resemble the indigenous Icamiabas, who battled against Spanish troops led by Francisco Orellana (who led an aggressive expedition into the Amazon region) in 1542; ichthýs (Gr. ἰχθύς), fish

Amazonichthys camelierae Esguícero & Mendonça 2023 in honor of Priscila Camelier, Universidade Federal da Bahia (Brazil), an “outstanding ichthyologist, passionate teacher, and strong women’s rights activist”

Amazonichthys lindeae (Géry 1973) in honor of Linde Geisler, who collected holotype with German biologist and aquarist Rolf Geisler (1925–2012), presumably her husband

Amazonichthys lu Esguícero & Mendonça 2023 in honor of biologist Luciana Leite, known by her friends as “Lu,” for her “incredible enthusiasm and work towards the conservation of South American flora and fauna and for her endless fight in favor of women’s rights” [a noun in apposition, without the genitive “ae”]

Atopomesus Myers 1927 átopos (Gr. ἄτοπος), peculiar; mesus, from mésos (Gr. μέσως), middle, allusion not explained, possibly referring to a “series of large scales on each side of the preventral region overlapping at the midline”

Atopomesus pachyodus Myers 1927 pachýs (Gr. παχύς), thick or stout; odon, Latinized and grammatically adjusted from the Greek nominative ὀδούς (odoús), tooth, referring to its “extremely massive and heavy” teeth

Charax Scopoli 1777 Charax, a non-binominal name introduced by Gronow (1764) for what is probably C. gibbosus, from chárax (Gr. χάραξ), a pointed stake of a palisade, referring to its densely packed sharp teeth

Charax apurensis Lucena 1987 –ensis, Latin suffix denoting place: Estado Apure, Venezuela, where type locality (Rio Canito), is situated

Charax awa Guimarães, Brito, Ferreira & Ottoni 2018 Awá, Tupí-Guaraní word meaning “man, people, person,” the name by which the native tribe Guajá (from Maranhão State, Brazil, where this species occurs) calls itself

Charax caudimaculatus Lucena 1987 cauda (L.), tail; maculatus (L.), spotted, referring to conspicuous lozenge-shaped spot at end of caudal peduncle

Charax condei (Géry & Knöppel 1976) in honor of French zoologist Bruno Condé (1920–2004), director of l’Aquarium de Nancy

Charax delimai Menezes & Lucena 2014 in honor of Flávio César Thadeo de Lima (b. 1974), Universidade Estadual de Campinas (Brazil), for his “great contributions to the knowledge of neotropical freshwater fishes” and for collecting the paratypes

Charax gibbosus (Linnaeus 1758) Latin for very crooked or humpbacked, referring to its projecting nape

Charax hemigrammus (Eigenmann 1912) half-lined, from hḗmisys (Gr. ἥμισυς), half, and grammḗ (Gr. γραμμή), line or stroke of the pen, referring to incomplete lateral line “developed on a few anterior pores only”

Charax leticiae Lucena 1987 in honor of Lucena’s daughter, Leticia

Charax macrolepis (Kner 1858) macro-, from makrós (Gr. μακρός), long or large; lepίs (Gr. λεπίς), scale, referring to larger scales compared with C. gibbosus

Charax metae Eigenmann 1922 of the Río Meta, Orinoco system, Colombia, type locality

Charax michaeli Lucena 1989 in honor of conservation ecologist Michael Goulding (b. 1950), who collected holotype

Charax niger Lucena 1989 Latin for dark or black, referring to its dark color pattern

Charax notulatus Lucena 1987 Latin for little-marked, referring to small spot at end of caudal peduncle

Charax pauciradiatus (Günther 1864) paucus (L.), few or scanty; radiatus (L.), rayed, referring to fewer anal-fin rays compared with C. gibbosus

Charax rupununi Eigenmann 1912 named for the Rupununi River, Guyana, type locality

Charax stenopterus (Cope 1894) narrow-finned, from sténos (Gr. στένος), narrow, and pterón (Gr. πτερόν) or ptéryx (πτέρυξ), fin, allusion not explained, possibly referring to its long and narrow anal fin

Charax tectifer (Cope 1870) tectum (L.), roof; –ifer, from fero (L.), to have or bear, “named for the fact that the free anterior margin of the nasal bones is more prolonged than in other species [of Anacyrtus (=Charax)], and overhangs the nares and premaxillaries”

Cynopotamus Valenciennes 1850 cyno-, from kynós (Gr. κυνός), genitive of kýōn (κύων), dog; potamus, from potamos (Gr. ποταμός), river, i.e., river dog, referring to conspicuous needle-sharp teeth of C. argenteus

Cynopotamus amazonum (Günther 1868) although epithet translates as “of the Amazons,” referring to mythological warrior women for whom the Amazon was named, it actually refers to the Amazon River basin (Brazil and Peru), where it occurs

Cynopotamus argenteus (Valenciennes 1836) Latin for silvery, referring to its shiny silver coloration

Cynopotamus atratoensis (Eigenmann 1907) –ensis, Latin suffix denoting place: Río Atrato system, Colombia, type locality

Cynopotamus bipunctatus Pellegrin 1909 bi-, from bis (L.), twice; punctatus (L.), spotted, referring to black humeral spot and a small black spot at base of median caudal-fin rays

Cynopotamus essequibensis Eigenmann 1912 –ensis, Latin suffix denoting place: Essequibo River drainage, Guyana, type locality

Cynopotamus gouldingi Menezes 1987 in honor of conservation ecologist Michael Goulding (b. 1950), who collected type specimens and has contributed to the ichthyology of Brazil

Cynopotamus juruenae Menezes 1987 of the rio Juruena, Brazil, type locality

Cynopotamus kincaidi (Schultz 1950) in honor of Schultz’ “good friend” Trevor Kincaid (1872–1970), zoologist and oyster farmer, University of Washington (Seattle, USA), in a Festschrift honoring Kincaid

Cynopotamus magdalenae (Steindachner 1879) of the Rio Magdalena (Colombia) or its basin, presumed type locality (name dates to a figure with no description)

Cynopotamus tocantinensis Menezes 1987 –ensis, Latin suffix denoting place: rio Tocantins, Brazil, one of the major river systems where type material was collected

Cynopotamus venezuelae (Schultz 1944) of Venezuela, where it is endemic to the Lake Maracaibo basin

Cynopotamus xinguano Menezes 2007 named for Xinguano, an Amerindian tribe living in Parque Indígena do Xingu, a national park in the rio Xingu basin, Brazil, type locality

Galeocharax Fowler 1910 etymology not explained, possibly galeós (Gr. γαλεός), weasel, used by Aristotle for the name of a small shark or dogfish, referring to shark-like appearance of needle-sharp teeth used to hold prey; Charax, typical genus of the Characiformes, from chárax (Gr. χάραξ), a pointed stake of a palisade, referring to densely packed sharp teeth, a common root-name formation in the order

Galeocharax goeldii (Fowler 1913) in honor of Swiss-Brazilian zoologist Émil (or Emilio) Goeldi (1859–1917), Director of the Museo Paraense and author of numerous works on the natural history of Brazil

Galeocharax gulo (Cope 1870) Latin for glutton, probably referring to large mouth filled with needle-sharp teeth used to hold prey

Galeocharax humeralis (Valenciennes 1834) Latin for humeral, referring to blackish humeral spot

Microschemobrycon Eigenmann 1915 micro-, from mikrós (Gr. μικρός), small, and schḗma (Gr. σχῆμα), form or shape, i.e., of small stature, referring to size of M. guaporensis (~37 mm); brycon, generalized term used in generic names of many characiform fishes, derived from brýchō (Gr. βρύχω), to bite, gnash teeth or eat greedily, originally an allusion to fully toothed maxillae

Microschemobrycon callops Böhlke 1953 callos, from kállos (Gr. κάλλος), beauty; ṓps (Gr. ὦψ), eye, referring to its “extremely attractive” eye, with “heavily pigmented” eyeball and silvery iris that appears bluish from certain angles, even after 27 years of preservation

Microschemobrycon casiquiare Böhlke 1953 named for Canal de Casiquiare, Venezuela, “the marvellous natural waterway which permits intermingling between the great faunas of the Orinoco system to the north and the Amazonas system to the south,” one of the locations where this species occurs

Microschemobrycon cryptogrammus Ohara, Jerep & Cavallaro 2019 crypto, from kryptós (Gr. κρυπτός), secret or hidden; grammus, scientific Neo-Latin derived from grammḗ (Gr. γραμμή), line or stroke of the pen, referring to dark midlateral stripe composed by internal pigmentation, visible only in live specimens

Microschemobrycon elongatus Géry 1973 Latin for prolonged, referring to its elongate body, largest depth in front of dorsal fin 4.5–5.05 in SL

Microschemobrycon geisleri Géry 1973 in honor of German biologist and aquarist Rolf Geisler (1925–2012), who collected holotype with Linde Geisler (presumably his wife)

Microschemobrycon guaporensis Eigenmann 1915 –ensis, Latin suffix denoting place: Rio Guaporé, Brazil, type locality

Microschemobrycon melanotus (Eigenmann 1912) mélas (Gr. μέλας), black; notus, from nṓtos (Gr. νῶτος), back, referring to dusky margined scales on back

Microschemobrycon meyburgi Meinken 1975 in honor of physician Otto August Gert Meyburg (1910–1996), Bremen, Germany, who collected holotype

Phenacogaster Eigenmann 1907 phénakos (Gr. φένακος), genitive of phénax (φέναξ), cheat or imposter; gastḗr (Gr. γαστήρ), belly or stomach, referring to reduced number of preventral scales of P. pectinata compared with other characins

Phenacogaster apletostigma Lucena & Gama 2007 ápletos (Gr. άπλετος), immense; stígma (Gr. στίγμα), mark or spot, referring to its large and vertically elongate humeral blotch

Phenacogaster beni Eigenmann 1911 named for Río Beni, Bolivia, type locality

Phenacogaster calverti (Fowler 1941) in honor of American entomologist Philip P. Calvert (1871–1961), University of Pennsylvania, “well known for his contributions on the Odonata” (dragonflies)

Phenacogaster capitulata Lucena & Malabarba 2010 Latin for having or ending in a small head, referring to smaller head length compared with all congeners except P. napoatilis and the P. pectinatus complex [adjective proposed with –us terminal spelling; emended to –a to agree with feminine gender of genus]

Phenacogaster carteri (Norman 1934) in honor of British zoologist George Stuart Carter (1893–1969), Cambridge University, who led Guyana expedition during which holotype was collected

Phenacogaster eurytaenia Lucena, Antonetti & Lucena 2018 eurýs (Gr. εὐρύς), wide or broad; taenia (L.), from tainía (Gr. ταινία), band or ribbon, referring to wide dark lateral stripe

Phenacogaster franciscoensis Eigenmann 1911 –ensis, Latin suffix denoting place: rio Francisco basin, Brazil, where it is endemic

Phenacogaster jancupa Malabarba & Lucena 1995 anagram composed from names of localities and drainages of the type locality: Janganda, rio Cuibá and rio Paraguay (Mato Grosso, Brazil)

Phenacogaster julliae Lucena & Lucena 2019 in honor of the authors’ granddaughter Jullia, who was born during the description of this species

Phenacogaster lucenae Souza, Mattox, Vita, Ochoa, Melo & Oliveira 2023 in honor of Zilda Margarete Seixas de Lucena, “an eminent ichthyologist who has significantly contributed to our knowledge of Phenacogaster taxonomy”

Phenacogaster maculoblonga Lucena & Malabarba 2010 macula (L.), stain, mark or spot, oblonga (L.), oblong (longer than broad), referring to straight, elongate and vertical humeral spot [adjective proposed with –us terminal spelling; emended to –a to agree with feminine gender of genus]

Phenacogaster megalosticta Eigenmann 1909 large-spotted, from mégas (Gr. μέγας), big, and stiktós (Gr. στικτός) spotted, referring to its “large conspicuous, sub-circular” humeral spot [adjective proposed with –us terminal spelling; emended to –a to agree with feminine gender of genus]

Phenacogaster microsticta Eigenmann 1909 small-spotted, from mikrós (Gr. μικρός), small, and stiktós (Gr. στικτός) spotted, referring to “very faint and small” humeral spot [adjective proposed with –us terminal spelling; emended to –a to agree with feminine gender of genus]

Phenacogaster naevata Antonetti, Lucena & Lucena 2018 Latin for having birth marks, referring to series of chevron-shaped marks on midlateral stripe

Phenacogaster napoatilis Lucena & Malabarba 2010 –ilis, Latin adjectival suffix: of the Napo River system, Ecuador, where it is endemic

Phenacogaster ojitata Lucena & Malabarba 2010 Latin adjectival form of the Spanish ojito, little eye, referring to smaller eye compared with congeners except P. megalostictus, P. simulatus and P. tegatus [adjective proposed with –us terminal spelling; emended to –a to agree with feminine gender of genus]

Phenacogaster pectinata (Cope 1870) Latin for comb-toothed, allusion not explained, perhaps referring to minute teeth along entire anterior margin of maxillary bone

Phenacogaster prolata Lucena & Malabarba 2010 Latin for extended or elongated, referring to relatively large and extended maxillary [adjective proposed with –us terminal spelling; emended to –a to agree with feminine gender of genus]

Phenacogaster retropinnus Lucena & Malabarba 2010 retro– (L.), behind; pinnus (L.), fin, referring to posterior placement of anal-fin origin

Phenacogaster simulata Lucena & Malabarba 2010 Latin for copied or imitated, similar to P. megalostictus [adjective proposed with –us terminal spelling; emended to –a to agree with feminine gender of genus]

Phenacogaster suborbitalis Ahl 1936 Latin for suborbital (below the eye), referring to second suborbital, “sculptured in a heavily wrinkled way” (translation)

Phenacogaster tegatus (Eigenmann 1911) etymology not explained, possibly adjectival form of tégos (Gr. τέγος), roof or covering, referring to black blotch over urinary bladder and/or to conspicuous spot on caudal peduncle [since etymology is uncertain, there is no requirement to change spelling (e.g, tegata) to agree with feminine gender of Phenacogaster]

Phenacogaster wayampi Le Bail & Lucena 2010 named for the Wayampi, indigenous people who live in the upper Rio Oiapoque system, French Guiana, where this species is endemic

Phenacogaster wayana Le Bail & Lucena 2010 named for the Wayana, indigenous people who live in Rio Maroni system, French Guiana, one of the areas where this species occurs

Roeboides Günther 1864 –oides, Neo-Latin from eī́dos (Gr. εἶδος), form or shape, presumably referring to similarity to Roestes (Acestrorhynchidae), then considered consubgeneric

Roeboides affinis (Günther 1868) Latin for related, presumably referring to perceived close relationship with and/or similarity to Cynopotamus amazonum (both species described in the genus Anacyrtus [=Charax] by Günther)

Roeboides araguaito Lucena 2003 named for Araguaito, a stream in the Orinoco River basin, Venezuela, type locality

Roeboides biserialis (Garman 1890) bi-, from bis (L.), twice; serialis (L.), rowed, referring to two series of conical teeth on intermaxillaries and anterior halves of mandibles

Roeboides bouchellei Fowler 1923 in honor of surgeon-metallurgist Theodore W. Bouchelle (1876–1934), Eden Mining Company, who sent a collection of Nicaraguan fishes to the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, including holotype of this one

Roeboides bussingi Matamoros, Chakrabarty, Angulo, Garita-Alvarado & McMahan 2013 in honor of American ichthyologist William Bussing (1933–2014), Universidad de Costa Rica, for his contributions to the knowledge of Costa Rican and Central American fishes; he was the first to suggest that this species was new to science

Roeboides carti Lucena 2000 named for Río Cartí Grande, Comarca de San Blas, Panama, type locality

Roeboides dayi (Steindachner 1878) patronym not identified, possibly in honor of Francis Day (1829–1889), Inspector-General of Fisheries in India and author of many papers on Indian fishes (although this fish is not Indian)

Roeboides descalvadensis Fowler 1932 –ensis, Latin suffix denoting place: Descalvados, Mato Grosso, Brazil, type locality

Roeboides dientonito Schultz 1944 local name for this species in Venezuela, derived from the Spanish diente, teeth, referring to small, tooth-like protuberances on upper lips

Roeboides dispar Lucena 2001 Latin for unlike or dissimilar, referring to a number of characters (e.g., 31–48 vs. 19 or fewer maxillary conical teeth) that makes this species unique in the genus

Roeboides guatemalensis (Günther 1864) –ensis, Latin suffix denoting place: presumably referring to several young specimens collected from Guamúchil, Guatemala (but type locality is Río Chagres, Panama)

Roeboides ilseae Bussing 1986 in honor of Bussing’s daughter Ilse, who accompanied him on numerous collecting trips and assisted in the collection and sorting of specimens

Roeboides loftini Lucena 2011 in honor of American ornithologist Horace Loftin (1927–2021), Florida State University, for his contributions to the knowledge of the distribution of the freshwater fishes of Panama

Roeboides margareteae Lucena 2003 in honor of Lucena’s wife, Zilda Margarete

Roeboides microlepis (Reinhardt 1851) micro-, from mikrós (Gr. μικρός), small; lepίs (Gr. λεπίς), scale, referring to smaller, more numerous scales compared with Charax gibbosus (its presumed congener at the time)

Roeboides myersii Gill 1870 in honor of American historian Philip Van Ness Myers (1846–1937), a traveling companion of naturalist-explorer James Orton (1830–1877), who led expedition that collected holotype (and requested that this species be named after Myers)

Roeboides numerosus Lucena 2000 Latin for numerous, referring to higher number (45–50) branched anal-fin rays compared with R. oligistos

Roeboides occidentalis Meek & Hildebrand 1916 Latin for western, referring to distribution on Pacific slope of Panama (compared with eastern distribution of R. guatemalensis on the Atlantic slope)

Roeboides oligistos Lucena 2000 olígistos (Gr. ὀλίγιστος), very few, referring to fewer branched anal-fin rays (38–44) compared with R. numerosus

Roeboides sazimai Lucena 2007 in honor of Brazilian zoologist Ivan Sazima, Universidade de Campinas, for his contribution to the knowledge of the lepidophagous habits of Roeboides in particular and Brazilian fishes in general

Roeboides xenodon (Reinhardt 1851) xenikós (Gr. ξενικός), strange or foreign (i.e., different); odon, Latinized and grammatically adjusted from the Greek nominative ὀδούς (odoús), tooth, referring to several larger tooth-like prongs that extend forward from upper jaw at margin of lip; Reinhardt also called this species a “strange little fish” (translation)