Genus · Tetras

Hasemania

Hasemania is a genus with 7 species in this atlas, catalogued in the Tetras section, recorded from Brazil. Adult sizes run from 1 in to 2 in. Every species below links to a full researched profile.

Species in atlas
7
Adult sizes
1–2 in
IUCN assessed
7 of 7 · 2 threatened
Recorded from
Brazil

About the genus

Hasemania is a genus of small tetras (family Characidae) found only in Brazil, mostly in coastal and Atlantic Forest drainages of the country's east. Like many small Brazilian characins, they are slim, schooling fish with a silvery body and — a trait often used to recognize the genus — an adipose fin that is reduced or missing altogether, unusual among characins, where that small fin behind the dorsal is normally present. The atlas's seven species run 1–2 in, tiny stream fish typical of the shaded, tannin-tinted waters common across their Atlantic Forest range.

The genus's best-known aquarium export is Hasemania nana, the silver-tipped tetra, a long-time community-tank staple prized for its coppery body and bright white-tipped fins, undemanding and peaceful in a shoal. Several of its relatives, including H. hanseni and H. maxillaris, carry no established common name and see little to no trade. Conservation status is mixed and, for a Brazil-only genus, concerning: alongside three Least Concern species sits one Critically Endangered and one Endangered species, a pattern consistent with the heavy habitat loss the Atlantic Forest's streams have suffered from agriculture and urban growth.

IUCN Red List: Critically Endangered · 1 Endangered · 1 Near Threatened · 1 Least Concern · 3 Not Evaluated · 1

The 7 species

Every Hasemania recorded in this atlas. Each card links to a full researched profile — distribution, water parameters, and aquarium care, cited to primary sources.

(Dagosta, Marinho & Camelier, 2014)

Piaba

1 in SL · LC

(Fowler, 1949)

1.5 in SL · LC

Ellis, 1911

1 in TL · CR

Ellis, 1911

Silver-tip Tetra, Black-band Tetra, Silvertip Tetra

2 in SL · NE

Lütken, 1875

Silver-tipped tetra, Silvertip Tetra, Copper Tetra

1.5 in SL · LC

(Lima & Gerhard, 2001)

Nego D'água Tetra

1 in SL · NT

Zanata & Serra, 2010

2 in SL · EN

Explore further

How to cite

Aquarist Atlas (2026). Genus Hasemania. Aquarist Atlas. https://www.aquaristatlas.com/hasemania/

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