Genus · Livebearers

Hiatirhaphis

Hiatirhaphis is a genus with 2 species in this atlas, catalogued in the Livebearers section, recorded from Costa Rica, Nicaragua and Panama. Adult sizes run from 3 in to 3 in. Every species below links to a full researched profile.

Species in atlas
2
Adult sizes
3 in
IUCN assessed
2 of 2
Recorded from
3 countries

About the genus

Hiatirhaphis is a small genus of live-bearing fish native to Caribbean-slope river drainages of Central America, with the two species in the atlas known from Costa Rica, Nicaragua, and Panama. As live-bearers, females give birth to free-swimming young after internal fertilization by the male's modified anal-fin gonopodium, the reproductive mode shared across this branch of Central American freshwater fish. Hiatirhaphis cascajalensis and Hiatirhaphis parismina are modestly sized, around 3 in, and both are named for the specific river drainages where they were first collected.

Beyond basic distribution and size, published data on this genus are sparse - it is known mainly from regional ichthyological surveys rather than aquarium or detailed behavioral studies, and it has no meaningful presence in the hobby trade. Both Hiatirhaphis cascajalensis and Hiatirhaphis parismina are currently Not Evaluated by the IUCN, which is common for narrowly distributed Central American live-bearers that have not yet received a formal conservation assessment.

IUCN Red List: Not Evaluated · 2

The 2 species

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

(Meek & Hildebrand, 1913)

Cascajal toothcarp

3 in TL · NE

(Meek, 1912)

Parismina toothcarp

3 in TL · NE

Explore further

How to cite

Aquarist Atlas (2026). Genus Hiatirhaphis. Aquarist Atlas. https://www.aquaristatlas.com/hiatirhaphis/

← All Livebearers