Geophaginae is a subfamily of cichlid

Cichlid

Cichlids are fishes from the family Cichlidae in the order Perciformes. Cichlids are members of a group known as the Labroidei along with the wrasses , damselfish , and surfperches . This family is both large and diverse. At least 1,300 species have been scientifically described, making it one of...

 fishes from South America

South America

South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...

, where they are found as far west as the Andes

Andes

The Andes is the world's longest continental mountain range. It is a continual range of highlands along the western coast of South America. This range is about long, about to wide , and of an average height of about .Along its length, the Andes is split into several ranges, which are separated...

 and as far south as northern Argentina

Argentina

Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...

. Very roughly, the subfamily can be divided into two subgroups based on appearance and to some extent behavior (from a phylogenetic point of view this grouping is not correct, however):

• Dwarf cichlid
  Dwarf cichlid
  Dwarf cichlid is a term used by fishkeeping hobbyists to describe an arbitrary assemblage of small-sized fish from the family Cichlidae. Although the grouping is widely used in the aquarium industry and hobby, the grouping has no taxonomic or ecological basis and is poorly defined...
  
  s, which do not surpass 10 centimetres (3.9 in) in length: Apistogramma, Apistogrammoides, Biotoecus, Crenicara, Dicrossus, Mazarunia, Microgeophagus, and Taeniacara.
• Eartheaters, a range of medium-small to fairly large cichlids, where many species have a habit of picking up large mouthfuls or earth or sand: Acarichthys, Biotodoma, Geophagus, Gymnogeophagus, and Satanoperca (the superficially similar Retroculus are sometimes also called eartheaters, but are members of another subfamily).

Genera

• Acarichthys
  Acarichthys heckelii
  Acarichthys heckelii is a South American species of cichlid fish. It is the only member of the genus Acarichthys. It is found in rivers in the Amazon and Essequibo basins....
  
  
• Apistogramma
  Apistogramma
  Apistogramma is a genus of approximately a hundred species of fish from the family Cichlidae found in tropical areas of the Amazon basin and Venezuela. Apistogramma literally means "irregular lateral line" referring to a common trait of the species under this taxon...
  
  
• Apistogrammoides
  Apistogrammoides
  Apistogrammoides is a genus of cichlid fish. The single species, Apistogrammoides pucallpaensis, is a very small cichlid, reaching in length. It is found in the lower Ucayali River in Peru, and the upper Amazon River in Peru and Colombia. The genus is closely allied with Apistogramma....
  
  
• Biotodoma
  Biotodoma
  Biotodoma is a small genus of cichlids. They are native to rivers in the Amazon, Orinoco and Essequibo basins in South America.-Species:*Biotodoma cupido – greenstreaked eartheater or cupid cichlid.*Biotodoma wavrini – Orinoco eartheater....
  
  
• Biotoecus
  Biotoecus
  Biotoecus is a fish genus of cichlids from northern South America. These small cichlids do not surpass in length.-Species:*Biotoecus dicentrarchus – from the Orinoco Basin.*Biotoecus opercularis – from the northern part of the Amazon Basin...
  
  
• Crenicara
  Crenicara
  Crenicara is a small genus of cichlid fishes that are endemic to creeks and rivers in the Amazon and Essequibo basins in South America. These cichlids have several dark spots on the side of their body, and do not surpass in length.-Species:...
  
  
• Dicrossus
  Dicrossus
  Dicrossus is a genus of small cichlids fishes. They are native to rivers in the Amazon and Orinoco basins in South America. These cichlids have several dark spots on the side of their body...
  
  
• Geophagus
  Geophagus
  Geophagus is a genus of cichlids from South America. The genus is currently polyphyletic and in need of further taxonomic revision. Some geophagine cichlids previously included in this genus have been reallocated to Gymnogeophagus or Satanoperca...
  
  
• Gymnogeophagus
  Gymnogeophagus
  Gymnogeophagus is a genus of cichlid fishes from South America, where they found are known from various river basins in southern Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay and northern Argentina. They are part of a group popularly known as eartheaters.-Species:...
  
  
• Mazarunia
  Mazarunia
  Mazarunia is a genus of cichlid fish from the Mazaruni River in Guyana. The single species, Mazarunia mazarunii, is a dwarf cichlid that reaches about in length....
  
  
• Microgeophagus
• Satanoperca
  Satanoperca
  Satanoperca is a small genus of cichlid fishes from South America, where they are known from the Orinoco, Essequibo, Nickerie, Amazon, Paraná and Paraguay river basins...
  
  
• Taeniacara
  Taeniacara
  Taeniacara is a genus of cichlid fish from the Amazon Basin in South America. The single species, Taeniacara candidi, is a dwarf cichlid that reaches about in length....
  
  

External links

• http://ctdbase.org/detail.go?type=taxon&acc=318553