Barbus
Encyclopedia
Barbus is a ray-finned fish genus
in the family
Cyprinidae. The type species
of Barbus is the Common Barbel, first described as Cyprinus barbus and now named Barbus barbus. Barbus is the namesake genus of the subfamily Barbinae, but given their relationships that taxon
is better included in the Cyprininae at least for the largest part (including the type species of Barbus).
s – refer to the fact that most members of the genera have a pair of barbel
s on their mouths, which they can use to search for food at the bottom of the water.
Barbels are often fished
for food; in some locations they are of commercial significance. The roe
of barbels is poisonous, however. The large Barbus barbs are also often eaten in their native range.
At Shanhûr in Egypt
, remains of a jar from the 6th-7th century AD were unearthed which contained a bunch of fish bones. The fishes were apparently pickle
d to produce a dish similar to the modern fesikh (or faseekh). Among the ancient remains, barbs (perhaps Barbus perince
) were plentiful, and Egyptians in our time still consider B. perince good for preparing fesikh, as it is traditionally done for the Sham el-Nessim (spring festival) celebrations.
The smaller barbs are in some cases traded as aquarium
fish. Some are quite significant, but as a whole the genus is not yet as well-represented in aquaria as the Southeast Asia
n Puntius
.
One species, Barbus microbarbis
from Rwanda
, is known to have gone extinct in recent times. Several others are only known from the type specimens, and their status and continuing existence needs to be confirmed. As many of these are from Lake Victoria
, which underwent massive ecological upheaval after Nile Perch
(Lates nilosus) were introduced, it may well be that some of them have not survived either.
, Barboides
, Barbonymus
(tinfoils), Barbopsis, Caecobarbus, Capoeta
, Carasobarbus
, Clypeobarbus
, Hypselobarbus
, Hypsibarbus
, Labeobarbus
(yellowfishes), Leptobarbus
, Luciobarbus
, Messinobarbus, Poropuntius
, Probarbus
, Pseudobarbus
(redfins), Puntioplites
and Puntius
(spotted barbs, commonly kept in aquaria
).
Thus, Barbus is for the time being restricted to the typical barbel
s and barbs, and only contains fishes from Africa
and Europe
as well as adjacent Asia
. However, the genus even in the reduced version is probably paraphyletic, and many African species (particularly the small ones) do not seem to belong here either. Eventually, Barbus is likely to be restricted to the group around B. barbus – the large European to Ponto-Caspian species commonly known as "barbels". Luciobarbus
and particularly Messinobarbus are highly similar and might better be included in Barbus again. They all seem to be close relatives – perhaps the closest living relatives – of the Dalmatian Barbelgudgeon
(Aulopyge huegelii). Carasobarbus
and Labeobarbus
are probably closely related to this group too, and some large hexaploid barbs (e.g. B. reinii
) presently placed in the present genus may well belong in Labeobarbus.
The small barbs from Africa, by contrast, are quite distinct. They might even warrant establishment of a new subfamily – in particular if the Labeoninae
are not included in the Cyprinae –, as they seem to be as distinct from barbels and typical carps
as these are from the garra
s (which are part of the disputed Labeoninae), rendering the old "Barbinae" paraphyletic. Within the small African barbs, several linages can be recognized. These are mostly diploid; a tetraploid group largely restricted to southern Africa is very close to Pseudobarbus
and might even be included therein. In particular the group called "redfins" may well be monophyletic and belong in Pseudobarbus entirely, instead of being split between that genus and Barbus, as is presently done.
remain in Barbus at present. Nonwithstanding the taxonomic dispute, new species of barbels and barbs are being discovered occasionally:
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
in the family
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
Cyprinidae. The type species
Type species
In biological nomenclature, a type species is both a concept and a practical system which is used in the classification and nomenclature of animals and plants. The value of a "type species" lies in the fact that it makes clear what is meant by a particular genus name. A type species is the species...
of Barbus is the Common Barbel, first described as Cyprinus barbus and now named Barbus barbus. Barbus is the namesake genus of the subfamily Barbinae, but given their relationships that taxon
Taxon
|thumb|270px|[[African elephants]] form a widely-accepted taxon, the [[genus]] LoxodontaA taxon is a group of organisms, which a taxonomist adjudges to be a unit. Usually a taxon is given a name and a rank, although neither is a requirement...
is better included in the Cyprininae at least for the largest part (including the type species of Barbus).
Description and uses
Their common names – barbs and barbelBarbel (fish species)
Barbels are group of small carp-like freshwater fish, almost all of the genus Barbus. They are usually found in gravel and rocky-bottomed slow-flowing waters with high dissolved oxygen content. A typical adult barbel will range from 25 to 100 cm in length and weigh anywhere between 200 g...
s – refer to the fact that most members of the genera have a pair of barbel
Barbel (anatomy)
A barbel on a fish is a slender, whiskerlike tactile organ near the mouth. Fish that have barbels include the catfish, the carp, the goatfish, sturgeon, the zebrafish and some species of shark...
s on their mouths, which they can use to search for food at the bottom of the water.
Barbels are often fished
Fishing
Fishing is the activity of trying to catch wild fish. Fish are normally caught in the wild. Techniques for catching fish include hand gathering, spearing, netting, angling and trapping....
for food; in some locations they are of commercial significance. The roe
Roe
Roe or hard roe is the fully ripe internal egg masses in the ovaries, or the released external egg masses of fish and certain marine animals, such as shrimp, scallop and sea urchins...
of barbels is poisonous, however. The large Barbus barbs are also often eaten in their native range.
At Shanhûr in Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
, remains of a jar from the 6th-7th century AD were unearthed which contained a bunch of fish bones. The fishes were apparently pickle
Pickling
Pickling, also known as brining or corning is the process of preserving food by anaerobic fermentation in brine to produce lactic acid, or marinating and storing it in an acid solution, usually vinegar . The resulting food is called a pickle. This procedure gives the food a salty or sour taste...
d to produce a dish similar to the modern fesikh (or faseekh). Among the ancient remains, barbs (perhaps Barbus perince
Barbus perince
Barbus perince is a species of ray-finned fish in the genus Barbus....
) were plentiful, and Egyptians in our time still consider B. perince good for preparing fesikh, as it is traditionally done for the Sham el-Nessim (spring festival) celebrations.
The smaller barbs are in some cases traded as aquarium
Aquarium
An aquarium is a vivarium consisting of at least one transparent side in which water-dwelling plants or animals are kept. Fishkeepers use aquaria to keep fish, invertebrates, amphibians, marine mammals, turtles, and aquatic plants...
fish. Some are quite significant, but as a whole the genus is not yet as well-represented in aquaria as the Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, South-East Asia, South East Asia or Southeastern Asia is a subregion of Asia, consisting of the countries that are geographically south of China, east of India, west of New Guinea and north of Australia. The region lies on the intersection of geological plates, with heavy seismic...
n Puntius
Puntius
Puntius is a genus of ray-finned fishes in the family Cyprinidae of the order Cypriniformes. Fishes of this genus are known as the spotted barbs for the predominant pattern, though many have vertical black bands instead. Also, the Spotted Barb proper is one particular species, Puntius binotatus....
.
One species, Barbus microbarbis
Barbus microbarbis
Barbus microbarbis is an extinct species of ray-finned fish in the Cyprinidae family.It was found only in Rwanda.Its natural habitats were rivers, freshwater lakes, and freshwater marshes.-Source:* Ntakimazi, G. 2005. . Downloaded on 19 July 2007....
from Rwanda
Rwanda
Rwanda or , officially the Republic of Rwanda , is a country in central and eastern Africa with a population of approximately 11.4 million . Rwanda is located a few degrees south of the Equator, and is bordered by Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo...
, is known to have gone extinct in recent times. Several others are only known from the type specimens, and their status and continuing existence needs to be confirmed. As many of these are from Lake Victoria
Lake Victoria
Lake Victoria is one of the African Great Lakes. The lake was named for Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom, by John Hanning Speke, the first European to discover this lake....
, which underwent massive ecological upheaval after Nile Perch
Nile perch
The Nile perch is a species of freshwaterfish in family Latidae of order Perciformes. It is widespread throughout muchof the Afrotropic ecozone, being native to the Congo, Nile, Senegal, Niger, and Lake Chad, Volta, Lake Turkana and other river basins. It also occurs in the brackish waters of...
(Lates nilosus) were introduced, it may well be that some of them have not survived either.
Systematics and taxonomy
Barbus has a long history as a "wastebin genus". Historically, most fish commonly known as "barbs" were usually placed here by default. More recently, many "barbs" have been reclassified into genera such as Barbichthys, BarbodesBarbodes
Barbodes is a genus of cyprinid fish, consisting of 11 species. The name is derived from the Latin word barbus, meaning "barbel", and the Greek word oides, meaning "similar to".- Species :* Barbodes belinka...
, Barboides
Barboides
Barboides is a genus of ray-finned fish in the family Cyprinidae.- Species :* Barboides britzi Conway & Moritz, 2006* Barboides gracilis Brüning, 1929...
, Barbonymus
Barbonymus
Barbonymus is a ray-finned fish genus in the family Cyprinidae, containing some barb species. The genus was only established in 1999, with the Tinfoil Barb as type species; thus, these fish are sometimes collectively called tinfoils...
(tinfoils), Barbopsis, Caecobarbus, Capoeta
Capoeta
Capoeta is a genus of ray-finned fish in the Cyprinidae family. It was formerly included within the Barbus-Puntius complex. Today, it is restricted to a group of western Asian forms around the type species.- Species :...
, Carasobarbus
Carasobarbus
Carasobarbus is a small genus of ray-finned fishes in the family Cyprinidae. Its species are found around the Near East region.Like many other "barbs", it was long included in Barbus...
, Clypeobarbus
Clypeobarbus
Clypeobarbus is a genus of cyprinid fish that is found in Africa.- Species :* Clypeobarbus bellcrossi * Clypeobarbus bomokandi * Clypeobarbus congicus...
, Hypselobarbus
Hypselobarbus
Hypselobarbus is a genus of cyprinid fishes endemic to India.- Species :* Hypselobarbus curmuca * Hypselobarbus dobsoni * Hypselobarbus dubius Hypselobarbus is a genus of cyprinid fishes endemic to India.- Species :* Hypselobarbus curmuca (F. Hamilton, 1807) (Curmuca Barb)* Hypselobarbus dobsoni...
, Hypsibarbus
Hypsibarbus
Hypsibarbus is a genus of cyprinid fish that is found in Southeast Asia.- Species :* Hypsibarbus annamensis * Hypsibarbus lagleri Rainboth, 1996* Hypsibarbus macrosquamatus...
, Labeobarbus
Labeobarbus
Labeobarbus is a mid-sized ray-finned fish genus in the family Cyprinidae. Its species are widely distributed throughout eastern Africa and especially southern Africa, but also in Lake Tana in Ethiopia. A common name, in particular for the southern species, is yellowfish...
(yellowfishes), Leptobarbus
Leptobarbus
Leptobarbus is a genus of cyprinid fish that originate from Asia. They are important food fish. Leptobarbus hoevenii is its type species.- Species :* Leptobarbus hoevenii...
, Luciobarbus
Luciobarbus
Luciobarbus is a somewhat disputed genus of ray-finned fishes in the family Cyprinidae. Its species are mainly found around the Mediterranean region. Its type species is the Mangar , for which the genus was established by Heckel in 1843...
, Messinobarbus, Poropuntius
Poropuntius
Poropuntius is a genus of cyprinid fish found in Asia. There are currently 40 species in this genus.- Species :The genus contains the following species:* Poropuntius angustus Kottelat, 2000* Poropuntius bantamensis...
, Probarbus
Probarbus
Probarbus is a genus of cyprinid fish found in Southeast Asia. There are currently three species in this genus.- Species :* Probarbus jullieni Sauvage, 1880...
, Pseudobarbus
Pseudobarbus
Pseudobarbus is a ray-finned fish genus in the family Cyprinidae. The type species is Burchell's Redfin . The scientific name is derived from the Ancient Greek pseudes and the Latin word barbus . This genus contains some of the South African redfins...
(redfins), Puntioplites
Puntioplites
Puntioplites is a genus of cyprinid fish that occurs in Southeast Asia. There are currently four described species in this genus.- Species :* Puntioplites bulu * Puntioplites falcifer H. M. Smith, 1929...
and Puntius
Puntius
Puntius is a genus of ray-finned fishes in the family Cyprinidae of the order Cypriniformes. Fishes of this genus are known as the spotted barbs for the predominant pattern, though many have vertical black bands instead. Also, the Spotted Barb proper is one particular species, Puntius binotatus....
(spotted barbs, commonly kept in aquaria
Aquaria
Aquaria may refer to:*Aquarium, in the plural*Aquaria , a computer game*Aquaria , a Brazilian metal band*Aquaria, one of the Twelve Colonies in Battlestar Galactica...
).
Thus, Barbus is for the time being restricted to the typical barbel
Barbel (fish species)
Barbels are group of small carp-like freshwater fish, almost all of the genus Barbus. They are usually found in gravel and rocky-bottomed slow-flowing waters with high dissolved oxygen content. A typical adult barbel will range from 25 to 100 cm in length and weigh anywhere between 200 g...
s and barbs, and only contains fishes from Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
and Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
as well as adjacent Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
. However, the genus even in the reduced version is probably paraphyletic, and many African species (particularly the small ones) do not seem to belong here either. Eventually, Barbus is likely to be restricted to the group around B. barbus – the large European to Ponto-Caspian species commonly known as "barbels". Luciobarbus
Luciobarbus
Luciobarbus is a somewhat disputed genus of ray-finned fishes in the family Cyprinidae. Its species are mainly found around the Mediterranean region. Its type species is the Mangar , for which the genus was established by Heckel in 1843...
and particularly Messinobarbus are highly similar and might better be included in Barbus again. They all seem to be close relatives – perhaps the closest living relatives – of the Dalmatian Barbelgudgeon
Dalmatian Barbelgudgeon
The Dalmatian Barbelgudgeon is a ray-finned fish species in the family Cyprinidae. It is the only member of the monotypic genus Aulopyge. The genus name is derived from the Ancient Greek aulós + pygé , and thus means approximately "fluted tail-stem"...
(Aulopyge huegelii). Carasobarbus
Carasobarbus
Carasobarbus is a small genus of ray-finned fishes in the family Cyprinidae. Its species are found around the Near East region.Like many other "barbs", it was long included in Barbus...
and Labeobarbus
Labeobarbus
Labeobarbus is a mid-sized ray-finned fish genus in the family Cyprinidae. Its species are widely distributed throughout eastern Africa and especially southern Africa, but also in Lake Tana in Ethiopia. A common name, in particular for the southern species, is yellowfish...
are probably closely related to this group too, and some large hexaploid barbs (e.g. B. reinii
Barbus reinii
Barbus reinii is a ray-finned fish species in the family Cyprinidae. It is provisionally retained in Barbus like many others, but this will almost certainly change in the foreseeable future...
) presently placed in the present genus may well belong in Labeobarbus.
The small barbs from Africa, by contrast, are quite distinct. They might even warrant establishment of a new subfamily – in particular if the Labeoninae
Labeoninae
Labeoninae is a doubtfully distinct subfamily of ray-finned fishes in the family Cyprinidae of order Cypriniformes. They inhabit freshwater and are most abundant in the region around southern China. They are a generally very apomorphic group, perhaps the most "advanced" of the Cyprinidae...
are not included in the Cyprinae –, as they seem to be as distinct from barbels and typical carps
Cyprinus
Cyprinus is the genus of typical carps in family Cyprinidae. They are of East Asian origin and closely related to some more barb-like genera, such Cyclocheilichthys and the recently-established Barbonymus . The crucian carps of western Eurasia, which include the goldfish Cyprinus is the genus of...
as these are from the garra
Garra
Garra, the garras, are a genus of ray-finned fish in the family Cyprinidae. These fish are one example of the "log suckers", sucker-mouthed barbs and other cyprinids commonly kept in aquaria to keep down algae...
s (which are part of the disputed Labeoninae), rendering the old "Barbinae" paraphyletic. Within the small African barbs, several linages can be recognized. These are mostly diploid; a tetraploid group largely restricted to southern Africa is very close to Pseudobarbus
Pseudobarbus
Pseudobarbus is a ray-finned fish genus in the family Cyprinidae. The type species is Burchell's Redfin . The scientific name is derived from the Ancient Greek pseudes and the Latin word barbus . This genus contains some of the South African redfins...
and might even be included therein. In particular the group called "redfins" may well be monophyletic and belong in Pseudobarbus entirely, instead of being split between that genus and Barbus, as is presently done.
Species
About 350 speciesSpecies
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
remain in Barbus at present. Nonwithstanding the taxonomic dispute, new species of barbels and barbs are being discovered occasionally: