Diagnostic Description
provided by Fishbase
Has a small, inferior mouth surrounded by fleshy lips.
Migration
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Potamodromous. Migrating within streams, migratory in rivers, e.g. Saliminus, Moxostoma, Labeo. Migrations should be cyclical and predictable and cover more than 100 km.
Morphology
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Dorsal soft rays (total): 16; Analsoft rays: 8
Trophic Strategy
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Inhabits slow-moving waters of rivers and feeds on plants (Ref. 9687). Juveniles nurse in floodplains and marshlands (Ref. 94495).
Biology
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Adults occur in rivers and ponds (Ref. 4832); in slow-moving waters of rivers and feed on plants (Ref. 9687), filamentous algae and diatoms (Ref. 44151). Fecundity of 2 specimens (38.8-40.5 cm) ranged between 193,000 and 238,000 (Ref. 1479).
Importance
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fisheries: commercial; aquaculture: commercial