Serrasalmus

Pirambebas
6.5 in (17 cm)-long juvenile Green Tiger Piranha (S. manueli)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Superclass:	Osteichthyes
Class:	Actinopterygii
Subclass:	Neopterygii
Infraclass:	Teleostei
Superorder:	Ostariophysi
Order:	Characiformes
Family:	Characidae
Genus:	Serrasalmus Lacepède, 1803
Species
31, see text

The genus Serrasalmus consists of several species of piranhas in subfamily Serrasalminae of the family Characidae. They are collectively known as pirambebas; the "typical" piranhas like the Piraya Piranha are nowadays placed in Pygocentrus.

These fish are predatory, have sharp teeth and generally have a rhomboid shape. In some, it is more ovoid, particularly in old specimens. Some Serrasalmus species can exceed 20 inches/50 cm (S.manueli, S.rhombeus and P.piraya, according to OPEFE), placing them among the largest Serrasalminae.

Species

Undescribed distinct species are known to exist. The status of others is still in need of study.

• Serrasalmus altispinis Merckx, Jégu & dos Santos, 2000
• Serrasalmus altuvei Ramírez, 1965 (caribe azul)
• Serrasalmus auriventris (Burmeister, 1861)
• Serrasalmus brandtii Lütken, 1875 (White Piranha)
• Serrasalmus compressus Jégu, Leão & dos Santos, 1991
• Serrasalmus eigenmanni Norman, 1929
• Serrasalmus elongatus Kner, 1858 (Slender Piranha, "caribe pinche")
• Serrasalmus emarginatus (Jardine, 1841)
• Serrasalmus geryi Jégu & dos Santos, 1988 (Violet Line Piranha)
• Serrasalmus gibbus Castelnau, 1855
• Serrasalmus gouldingi W. L. Fink & Machado-Allison, 1992 (Blue Tiger Piranha)
• Serrasalmus hastatus W. L. Fink & Machado-Allison, 2001
• Serrasalmus hollandi (C. H. Eigenmann, 1915)
• Serrasalmus humeralis Valenciennes, 1850 (Pirambeba)
• Serrasalmus irritans (W. K. H. Peters, 1877) ("caribe pinche")
• Serrasalmus maculatus Kner, 1858 (Spotted Piranha)
• Serrasalmus manueli (Fernández-Yépez & Ramírez, 1967) (Green Tiger Piranha, caribe parguasero)
• Serrasalmus marginatus Valenciennes, 1837
• Serrasalmus medinai Ramírez, 1965 (Red-throated Piranha)
• Serrasalmus nalseni Fernández-Yépez, 1969 (caribe pintado)
• Serrasalmus neveriensis Machado-Allison, W. L. Fink, López Rojas & Rodenas, 1993
• Serrasalmus nigricans (Spix & Agassiz, 1829)
• Serrasalmus nigricauda (Burmeister, 1861)
• Serrasalmus odyssei Hubert & Renno, 2010
• Serrasalmus rhombeus (Linnaeus, 1766) (Redeye Piranha, caribe amarillo)
• Serrasalmus sanchezi Géry, 1964 (Sharp-snouted Piranha)
• Serrasalmus scotopterus (Jardine, 1841)
• Serrasalmus serrulatus (Valenciennes, 1850) (caribe cortador)
• Serrasalmus spilopleura Kner, 1858 (Speckled Piranha)
• Serrasalmus stagnatilis (Jardine, 1841)
• Serrasalmus undulatus (Jardine, 1841)

References

• Froese, Rainer, and Daniel Pauly, eds. (2011). Species of Serrasalmus in FishBase. October 2011 version.

• "Serrasalmus". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. http://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=163261. Retrieved 6 June 2006. 

OPEFE