Prochilodontidae

The Prochilodontidae, the bocachicos or flannel-mouthed characins, are a small family of freshwater fishes found primarily in the northern half of South America, south to Paraguay and northern Argentina. This family is closely related to the Curimatidae, and in the past they were included in Characidae.

Prochilodontidae
Prochilodus lineatus
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Actinopterygii
Order:	Characiformes
Suborder:	Characoidei
Family:	Prochilodontidae C. H. Eigenmann, 1909[1]
Genera
see text

These fish have fleshy lips with rows of small teeth; their lips are able to be extended into a sucking disc. The largest species reach up to 80 cm (2.6 ft) in length, and live in huge schools, making them a popular food fish. They travel upriver to spawn, and make audible grunting noises that have been described as resembling the sound of a motorbike.^[2]

Genera

Prochilodontidae contains the following genera:^[3]

• Ichthyoelephas Posada, 1909
• Prochilodus Agassiz, 1829
• Semaprochilodus Fowler, 1941