''Dianema'' is a small

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

freshwater Fresh water or freshwater is any naturally occurring liquid or frozen water containing low concentrations of dissolved salts and other total dissolved solids. The term excludes seawater and brackish water, but it does include non-salty mi ...

catfish Catfish (or catfishes; order (biology), order Siluriformes or Nematognathi) are a diverse group of ray-finned fish. Catfish are common name, named for their prominent barbel (anatomy), barbels, which resemble a cat's whiskers, though not ...

in the Callichthyinae subfamily of the armored catfish family. The

type species In International_Code_of_Zoological_Nomenclature, zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the spe ...

for this genus is ''Dianema longibarbis''. The name is derived from the

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

''di'', meaning "two", and ''nema'', meaning "filament". The two species of ''Dianema'' share approximately the same distribution, and are found in the Amazon River and lower courses of its tributaries. ''Dianema'' species have the habit of swimming midwater, as opposed to the bottom as in most callichthyids.

Species

There are currently two described species in this genus: *'' Dianema longibarbis''

Cope A cope ( ("rain coat") or ("cape")) is a liturgical long mantle or cloak, open at the front and fastened at the breast with a band or clasp. It may be of any liturgical colour. A cope may be worn by any rank of the Catholic or Anglican clerg ...

, 1872 (Porthole catfish) *'' Dianema urostriatum'' ( A. Miranda-Ribeiro, 1912) (Flagtail catfish)

References

Callichthyidae Catfish of Brazil Fish of the Amazon basin Catfish genera Taxa named by Edward Drinker Cope Freshwater fish genera {{callichthyidae-stub