Triportheidae, the hatchet characins, is a family of characiform fishes, including about 23 species. This family was raised from the status of a subfamily to family based on extensive analysis of characiform species.
Fossils of this group date back to the Oligocene, with the fossil species â Lignobrycon ligniticus <small>(Woodward, 1898)</small> from Brazil.
Taxonomy
The following genera are placed in this family:
- Family Triportheidae <small>Fowler, 1940</small>
- Subfamily Triportheinae <small>Fowler, 1940</small> (keeled characines)
- Genus Lignobrycon <small>Eigenmann & Myers, 1929</small> (=Moojenichthys <small>Miranda-Ribeiro, 1956</small>)
- Genus Triportheus <small>Cope, 1872</small>
- Subfamily Agoniatinae <small>Bleeker, 1859</small> (anchovy characines)
- Genus Agoniates <small>Müller & Troschel, 1845</small>
- Subfamily Clupeacharacinae <small>Fowler, 1958</small> (herring characines)
- Genus Clupeacharax <small>Pearson, 1924</small>
- Genus Engraulisoma <small>Castro, 1981</small>
References