Brycon Explained
Brycon is a genus of fish in the family Bryconidae and order Characiformes found in freshwater habitats in Central and South America, ranging from southern Mexico to northern Argentina. Despite not being closely related to true trout, they are sometimes called South American trout.[1] Members of the genus may be referred to by a number of other different common names in various languages. They reach a maximum length of 11.9- depending on the species involved. Some species perform seasonal breeding migrations.[2]
They feed heavily on fruits and seeds, but also take other plant material, invertebrates and small fish.[3] [4] Their food is typically taken from the water, but they are able to jump out of the water to "pluck" low-hanging seeds and fruits directly from trees.[1] Some seeds are crushed when eaten, but may also pass undamaged through the fish, making them seed dispersers.[1] [3] [4]
Brycon support important fisheries and based on a review by IBAMA, they are the fifth most caught fish by weight in the Brazilian Amazon.[2]
Species
There are currently 46 recognized species in this genus:
- Brycon alburnus (Günther, 1860)
- Brycon amazonicus (Spix & Agassiz, 1829)
- Brycon argenteus Meek & Hildebrand, 1913
- Brycon atrocaudatus (Kner, 1863)
- Brycon behreae Hildebrand, 1938
- Brycon bicolor Pellegrin, 1909
- Brycon cephalus (Günther, 1869)
- Brycon chagrensis (Kner, 1863)
- Brycon coquenani Steindachner, 1915
- Brycon costaricensis Angulo & Gracian-Negrete, 2013[5]
- Brycon coxeyi Fowler, 1943
- Brycon dentex Günther, 1860
- Brycon devillei (Castelnau, 1855)
- Brycon dulcis F. C. T. Lima & F. Vieira, 2017[6]
- Brycon falcatus J. P. Müller & Troschel, 1844[6]
- Brycon ferox Steindachner, 1877[6]
- Brycon fowleri Dahl, 1955
- Brycon gouldingi F. C. T. Lima, 2004[6]
- Brycon guatemalensis Regan, 1908
- Brycon henni C. H. Eigenmann, 1913
- Brycon hilarii (Valenciennes, 1850)[6]
- Brycon howesi F. C. T. Lima, 2017[6]
- Brycon insignis Steindachner, 1877[6]
- Brycon labiatus Steindachner, 1879
- Brycon medemi Dahl, 1960
- Brycon meeki C. H. Eigenmann & Hildebrand, 1918
- Brycon melanopterus (Cope, 1872)[6]
- Brycon moorei Steindachner, 1878
- Brycon nattereri Günther, 1864[6]
- Brycon obscurus Hildebrand, 1938
- Brycon oligolepis Regan, 1913
- Brycon opalinus (G. Cuvier, 1819)[6]
- Brycon orbignyanus (Valenciennes, 1850)[6]
- Brycon orthotaenia Günther, 1864[6]
- Brycon pesu J. P. Müller & Troschel, 1845
- Brycon petrosus Meek & Hildebrand, 1913
- Brycon polylepis Moscó Morales, 1988[6]
- Brycon posadae Fowler, 1945
- Brycon rubricauda Steindachner, 1879
- Brycon sinuensis Dahl, 1955
- Brycon stolzmanni Steindachner, 1879[6]
- Brycon striatulus (Kner, 1863)
- Brycon unicolor Moscó Morales, 1988
- Brycon vermelha F. C. T. Lima & R. M. C. Castro, 2000[6]
- Brycon vonoi F. C. T. Lima, 2017[6]
- Brycon whitei G. S. Myers & S. H. Weitzman, 1960[6]
Notes and References
- Web site: Brycons . 9 March 2011 . . 3 December 2010 . https://web.archive.org/web/20101203134708/http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/life/Brycon . dead .
- Araujo-Lima, C.A.R.M.; and M.L. Ruffino (2003). Migratory Fishes of the Brazilian Amazon. Pp. 233—302 in: Carolsfeld, J.; B. Harvey; C. Ross; and A. Baer (editors). Migratory Fishes of South America.
- Book: Goulding, M . 1980 . The Fishes and the Forest: Explorations in Amazonian Natural History . University of California Press . 68–100 . 0-520-04131-3 .
- Reysa . P. . Sabino . J. . Galetti . M. . Frugivory by the fish Brycon hilarii (Characidae) in western Brazil . 2009 . Acta Oecologica . 35 . 1 . 136–141 . 10.1016/j.actao.2008.09.007 . 2009AcO....35..136R .
- Angulo, A. & Gracian-Negrete, J.M. (2013): A new species of Brycon (Characiformes: Characidae) from Nicaragua and Costa Rica, with a key to the lower Mesoamerican species of the genus. Zootaxa, 3731 (2): 255–266.
- Lima, F.C.T. (2017): A revision of the cis-andean species of the genus Brycon Müller & Troschel (Characiformes: Characidae). Zootaxa, 4222 (1): 1–189.
