''Folifer'' is a monospecific genus of brackish and freshwater

ray-finned fish Actinopterygii (; ), members of which are known as ray-finned fish or actinopterygians, is a class of bony fish that comprise over 50% of living vertebrate species. They are so called because of their lightly built fins made of webbings of sk ...

belonging to the

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Cyprinidae Cyprinidae is a family of freshwater fish commonly called the carp or minnow family, including the carps, the true minnows, and their relatives the barbs and barbels, among others. Cyprinidae is the largest and most diverse fish family, and t ...

, the carps, minnows and related fishes. The only species in the genus is ''Folifer brevifilis'', a fish with a wide distribution in

Southeast Asia Southeast Asia is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, southeastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of China, east of the Indian subcontinent, and northwest of the Mainland Au ...

and southern China, including

Hainan Hainan is an island provinces of China, province and the southernmost province of China. It consists of the eponymous Hainan Island and various smaller islands in the South China Sea under the province's administration. The name literally mean ...

. It is found in the middle and lower parts of flowing rivers where there is clear and open water, it avoids still water. The diet f this fish includes molluscs, crustaceans, insect larvae, algae and organic debris. This species attains sexual maturity after tw years and spawns over stont riverbeds in areas of clear and open water, This species has a maximum

total length Fish measurement is the measuring of individual fish and various parts of their anatomies, for data used in many areas of ichthyology, including taxonomy and fishery biology. Overall length Standard length (SL) is the length of a fish measured f ...

of , although a

standard length Fish measurement is the measuring of individual fish and various parts of fish anatomy, their anatomies, for data used in many areas of ichthyology, including Taxonomy (biology), taxonomy and fishery biology. Overall length Standard length (SL) is ...

of is more typical. ''F. brevifilis'' is valued as a food fish but is not taken in large numbers. It may be a migratory species which may be impacted by dams and river diversions. Some authorities split this species into three, with ''Folifer hainanesis'' on Hainan and ''Folifer yunnanensis'' in

Yunnan Yunnan; is an inland Provinces of China, province in Southwestern China. The province spans approximately and has a population of 47.2 million (as of 2020). The capital of the province is Kunming. The province borders the Chinese provinces ...

being recognised as separate species.

References

Cyprinid fish of Asia Acrossocheilinae Fish described in 1881 Taxa named by Wilhelm Peters {{Cyprinidae-stub