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Sand Knifefishes
Rhamphichthyidae
Sand knifefish are freshwater electric fish of the family Rhamphichthyidae, from freshwater habitats in South America.
Just like most part of the members of the Gymnotiformes group, they also have elongated and compressed bodies and electric organs. The long anal fin actually extends from before the pectoral fins to the tip of the tail. There is no dorsal fin. Teeth are absent in the oral jaws and the snout is very long and tubular. The nostrils are very close together. This group is sometimes known as the tubesnout knifefishes for this reason.
5 branches of this family, most-observed first · about 26 known species
Gymnorhamphichthys
genusGymnorhamphichthys

Rhamphichthys
genusRhamphichthys

Steatogenys
genusSteatogenys

Hypopygus
genusHypopygus
Iracema
genusIracema
Where it lives
Recorded sightings
—
geo-referenced records in GBIF, from museums, herbaria and field observers.
Drag the globe to turn it. Dots are where records exist, not a range map; darker means more records.
In the stacks
Searching the stacks…
Every page naming Rhamphichthyidae in the Biodiversity Heritage Library →
This page is assembled live from iNaturalist, GBIF, Wikipedia, the Source Library and the Internet Archive. It is not yet part of the hand-edited codex. iNaturalist taxon 86043.