Pencil fish

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Pencil fish
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Actinopterygii Order: Characiformes Family: Lebiasinidae Genus: Nannostomus
Species
Nannostomus anduzei Nannostomus beckfordi (Golden pencilfish) Nannostomus bifasciatus (Two-lined pencilfish) Nannostomus britskii Nannostomus digrammus Nannostomus eques Nannostomus espei (Espei's pencilfish) Nannostomus harrisoni (Harrison's pencilfish) Nannostomus limatus Nannostomus marginatus (Dwarf pencilfish) Nannostomus marilynae Nannostomus minimus Nannostomus mortenthaleri Nannostomus nitidus Nannostomus trifasciatus Nannostomus unifasciatus

Nannostomus Günther, 1872, is a genus of fish belonging to the Lebiasinidae family of Characins. Fish of this genus are known as the Pencil Fish or Pencilfish.

Some members of the family Hemiodontidae, originating from South America, are also known as the pencil fish because of their small, slender bodies. They are related to Characins, but only have teeth in their upper jaws.

The family Monodactylidae is also sometimes known as the pencil fish. These fish live in brackish water along the coasts and estuaries of Africa, southern Asia, and Australia.

[edit] See also

• List of freshwater aquarium fish species

[edit] References

• Introduction To The Fish Families 2004. Popular Freshwater Tropical Fish. Accessed on June 24, 2005.
• "Nannostomus". FishBase. Ed. Ranier Froese and Daniel Pauly. May 2005 version. N.p.: FishBase, 2005.
• Nannostomus (TSN 163096). Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Accessed on 24 June 2005.