Vandelliinae
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| Vandelliinae | ||||||||||||
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| Vandellia Valenciennes, 1846 |
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Vandelliinae is a subfamily of catfishes (order Siluriformes) of the family Trichomycteridae. Vandelliines are hematophagous, feeding on the blood of larger fish. Members of this subfamily may be known as candirú, known for their peculiar habit of entering the human urethra.[1]
Vandelliines usually prey upon ostariophysan fishes such as pimelodids, doradids, and characins.[2] The eyes of Vandelliinae species are relatively large among catfishes, indicating that sight may be important in prey detection.[2]
[edit] References
- ^ Nelson, Joseph S. (2006). Fishes of the World. John Wiley & Sons, Inc. ISBN 0-471-25031-7.
- ^ a b Spotte, Stephen; Petry, Paulo; Zuanon, Jansen A.S. (2001). "Experiments on the feeding behavior of the hematophagous candiru, Vandellia cf. plazaii". Environmental Biology of Fishes 60: 459–464. doi:.
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