Genus · Tetras

Nematocharax

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

Species in atlas
2
Adult sizes
2 in
IUCN assessed
2 of 2
Recorded from
Brazil

About the genus

Nematocharax is a small genus of characins (tetras) native to coastal river drainages in Brazil. As in the related genus Nematobrycon, the genus name points to threadlike, elongated fin rays that develop in males, a feature tied to the sexual dimorphism seen across this style of tetra. The atlas covers 2 species, Nematocharax costai and N. venustus, both small fish in the 2 in range, typical of the compact characins found in Atlantic-forest and coastal Brazilian streams.

Data on Nematocharax in the aquarium hobby are sparse; these are not widely traded fish, and most available information concerns their taxonomy and native range rather than tank care, so any husbandry approach should follow general best practice for small Brazilian stream characins - soft, warm, well-oxygenated water with cover. Conservation status is mixed within the genus: one species is assessed as Least Concern, and the other has not yet been formally evaluated.

IUCN Red List: Least Concern · 1 Not Evaluated · 1

The 2 species

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

Bragança, Barbosa & Mattos, 2013

2 in SL · NE

Weitzman, Menezes & Britski, 1986

2 in SL · LC

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How to cite

Aquarist Atlas (2026). Genus Nematocharax. Aquarist Atlas. https://www.aquaristatlas.com/nematocharax/

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