Acestrorhynchidae

Acestrorhynchidae is a family of freshwater fish in the order Characiformes, found in South America. Members of this family are known as freshwater barracudas (not to be confused with the unrelated true barracudas of the Sphyraenidae) and biting tetras.^[1]

Acestrorhynchidae
Acestrorhynchus pantaneiro
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Actinopterygii
Order:	Characiformes
Superfamily:	Characoidea
Family:	Acestrorhynchidae Eigenmann, 1912
Type genus
Acestrorhynchus Eigenmann & Kennedy, 1903
Subfamilies
Acestrorhynchinae Roestinae Heterocharacinae

Until recently, this family contained only the genus Acestrorhynchus. However, taxonomic studies have found that the subfamilies Heterocharacinae (originally placed in the closely related Characidae) and Roestinae (originally placed in the more distantly related Cynodontidae) are actually more closely related to Acestrorhynchus, and now they are also placed in this family.^[2][3][4]

The family is classified as follows:^[1][5]

• Family Acestrorhynchidae
  • Subfamily Acestrorhynchinae Eigenmann, 1912 (freshwater barracudas)
    • Genus Acestrorhynchus Eigenmann & Kennedy, 1903
  • Subfamily Roestinae Lucena & Menezes, 1998 (biting tetras)
    • Genus Gilbertolus Eigenmann, 1907
    • Genus Roestes Günther, 1864
  • Subfamily Heterocharacinae Géry, 1966 (small biting tetras)
    • Genus Heterocharax Eigenmann, 1912
    • Genus Hoplocharax Géry, 1966
    • Genus Lonchogenys Myers, 1927