Hyphessobrycon melanostichos shares a number of similarities with Hyphessobrycon sp. Blue Ribbon. The former can be differentiated from the latter by a lighter set, more streamlined body , smaller humeral spot and also red colouring, which is not present on the Blue Ribbon tetra. Care and maintenance of the two species is however, virtually the same.

H. compressus is the type species of the genus Hyphessobrycon but is not well-known in the ornamental trade.

Hyphessobrycon was raised by Durbin in Eigenmann (1908) as a subgenus of Hemigrammus, differing from the latter by the absence of scales on the caudal-fin.

H. eschwartzae is told apart from other laterally-striped Hyphessobrycon species from the Madre de Dios watershed by the following characters: 4 simple anal-fin rays (vs. 3 in other species listed); 13-15 dentary teeth (vs. 5-11); 6 teeth in the internal premaxillary ro…

This species superficially resembles the popular silver-tipped tetra, Hasemania nana, but can easily be told apart by presence (vs. absence) of an adipose-fin.

It can be told apart from other Hyphessobrycon sp…

H. borealis is a member of the putative ‘H. heterorhabdus-group’ of closely-related species within the genus as proposed by Géry (1977).

There are around 15 members characterised by a ‘longitudinal pattern’ consisting of a thin, usu…

The two ponds where H. auca was collected were located on a sand bar deposited by the nearby Paraná river during the Pleistocene.

At time of collection the substrates were composed of sand with submerged vegetation dominated by Egeria najas plus floating Eichhornia in marginal areas.

This species is relatively rare in the aquarium hobby but is occasionally traded as ‘red-tailed flag tetra’.

It lends its name to the H. aghula group of closely-related species within the genus as proposed by Géry (1977, see below) of which members share the following characters which set them apart from other characids: lower half of the body dark, especially above the anal-fin; usually possessing a laterally-elongate humeral spot, more-or-less united wit…

It differs from H. paucilepis by possessing 30-31 scales in the lateral row (vs. 28-29), 3 scales between the lateral line and anal-fin (vs. 4), 10 predorsal scales (vs. 9), ii, 9 dorsal-fin rays (vs. iii, 8), 4 maxillary teeth (vs. 1), and the distance between the dorsal-fi…

Known only from headwaters of the upper Paraná river basin in the Federal District plus the neighbouring state of Goiás, central Brazil.

Type locality is ‘Planaltina, Lagoa Fervedeira, Goiás, Brazil’ with additional records existing mostly from the rio São Bartolomeu including the Bananal, Santa Maria-Torto and Gama tributary systems.

Collected from small streams flowing through savanna grassland containing clear, light brown-coloured water with substrates of sand and gravel and little in the way of submerged or riparian vegetation.

At the type locality pH varied between 5.8 – 6.3, GH and KH were both <1°, conductivity was 9-13 μs and temperature 24.7 – 27.2°C/76.6 – 80.1°F.