Danionidae, Bleeker, 1863

Family Danionidae View in CoL

Zebrafish and allies

Danionidae is a large family of cypriniform fishes previously treated as a subfamily of Cyprinidae . The exact composition of this family is still under discussion, and the question of which genera should be included has not yet been fully resolved. Further work is needed to settle this unsatisfactory situation. The family is speciose, with approximately 300 species and 50 genera. It is particularly diverse in sub-Saharan Africa and subtropical and tropical Asia, including numerous small rainforest species. Many of these are popular ornamental fish. The vertebrate model fish Danio rerio and the miniature fish Paedocypris progenetica , one of the smallest known vertebrates, are included in this family. All species are distinctive, small, herring-like fishes characterised by the lateral line on the lower part of the caudal peduncle.

Further reading. Tang et al. 2010 (phylogeny).