Chalceus

Chalceus is a genus of fish that inhabits freshwater habitats in South America. Members can be found in the Amazon and Orinoco basins, as well as in the Guianas and various tributaries of the former.[2] It is the sole representative of the family Chalceidae.

Chalceus
Chalceus macrolepidotus
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Characiformes
Family: Chalceidae
Genus: Chalceus
G. Cuvier, 1818
Synonyms[1]
  • Pellegrinina Fowler, 1907
  • Plethodectes Cope, 1870

Description

Members of the genus Chalceus typically reach a length of 15–25 cm (5.9–9.8 in), but are up to about 30 cm (12 in).[3] They have an elongated shape, and relatively large scales. Their fins are a variety of colors, most commonly red, yellow, or hyaline, with a red or pink tail being the most common.[4]

Classification

Chalceus was previously classified as a member of the family Characidae, and is still listed there by some authorities (like GBIF and ITIS).[5] However, recent phylogenetic and morphological analysis has prompted a move into the family Chalceidae, which is currently home only to the genus Chalceus (making it monotypic).[6][7] This move was also done in order to keep the family Charadicae monophyletic.[6]

Currently, there are eight accepted species in the genus Chalceus.[3][1] In alphabetical order, they are:

NB: Those described by Jardine are currently Species inquirenda.

History

The genus Chalceus was established by Georges Cuvier in the year 1818 when he described the pinktail chalceus (C. marcolepidotus) as a new species in a new genus.[8] By way of monotypy, the pinktail became the type species therein.[9] The next established species was the tucan fish, C. erythrurus, which was named by Edward Drinker Cope in 1870, though he first classified it in the genus Plethodectes with the full name Plethodectes erythrurus.[10] In 1872, he moved it to Chalceus.[11]

A full redescription of the genus occurred in the year 2004, undertaken by Brazilian biologists Angela M. Zanata and Mônica Toledo-Piza, which resulted in the nomination of the other three species.[12]

Etymology

The name Chalceus is Greek in origin and comes from the word chalkos, which means copper.[13][14] This was given by Cuvier because he observed that the original specimen's scales were "sometimes golden" when preserved in alcohol.[8][15]

References
  1. Bailly, Nicolas (2014). "Chalceus Cuvier, 1818". WoRMS. World Register of Marine Species. Retrieved 27 September 2023.
  2. "COPEPEDIA summary for Chalceidae : T5006059 : Family". www.st.nmfs.noaa.gov. Retrieved 2021-12-26.
  3. Froese, Rainer and Pauly, Daniel, eds. (2022). Species of Chalceus in FishBase. January 2022 version.
  4. "Chalceus, Cuvier, 1817". Plazi TreatmentBank. Retrieved 26 December 2021.
  5. "Chalceus names - Encyclopedia of Life". eol.org. Retrieved 2021-12-26.
  6. Oliveira, C., Avelino, G.S., Abe, K.T., Mariguela, T.C., Benine, R.C., Orti, G., Vari, R.P., & Correa e Castro, R.M. (2011): Phylogenetic relationships within the speciose family Characidae (Teleostei: Ostariophysi: Characiformes) based on multilocus analysis and extensive ingroup sampling. BMC Evolutionary Biology, 11: 275. doi: 10.1186/1471-2148-11-275
  7. Cástor Guisande, Patricia Pelayo-Villamil, Manuel Vera, Ana Manjarrés-Hernández, Mónica R. Carvalho, Richard P. Vari, Luz Fernanda Jiménez, Carlos Fernández, Paulino Martínez, Edgar Prieto-Piraquive, Carlos Granado-Lorencio, Santiago R. Duque, "Ecological Factors and Diversification among Neotropical Characiforms", International Journal of Ecology, vol. 2012, Article ID 610419, 20 pages, 2012. https://doi.org/10.1155/2012/610419
  8. Cuvier, Georges (1818). "Sur les Poissons du sous-genre Myletes". Mémoires du Muséum d'histoire naturelle. 4: 454. Retrieved 26 December 2021.
  9. Fricke, Ron; Eschmeyer, William N.; Fong, Jon D. (2020). "Genera/Species of Fishes by Family/Subfamily". Eschmeyer's Catalog of Fishes. California Academy of Sciences. Retrieved 26 December 2021.
  10. Cope, Edward Drinker (1870). "Contribution to the Ichthyology of the Maranon". Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society. 11 (81): 563–564. Retrieved 26 December 2021.
  11. Cope, Edward Drinker (1872). "On the fishes of the Ambyiacu River". Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia. 23: 262. Retrieved 26 December 2021.
  12. Zanata, A.M.; M. Toledo-Piza (2004). "Taxonomic revision of the South American fish genus Chalceus Cuvier (Teleostei: Ostariophysi: Characiformes) with the description of three new species". Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society. 140 (11): 103–135. doi:10.1111/j.1096-3642.2004.00090.x.
  13. "Glosbe". Copper in Ancient Greek (to 1453). Retrieved 26 December 2021.
  14. Hackh, Ingo W. D. (1918). "The Romance of the Chemical Elements". American Journal of Pharmacy and the Sciences Supporting Public Health. 90: 490. Retrieved 26 December 2021.
  15. Scharpf, Christopher; Lazara, Kenneth J. (15 September 2020). "Order CHARACIFORMES: Families IGUANODECTIDAE, TRIPORTHEIDAE, BRYCONIDAE, CHALCEIDAE and GASTEROPELECIDAE". The ETYFish Project. Retrieved 26 December 2021.
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