The Cyprinidae are the family of freshwater fishes, collectively called cyprinids, that includes the carps, the true minnows, and their relatives. Also commonly called the "carp family", or "minnow family", Cyprinidae is the largest and most diverse fish family and the largest vertebrate animal family in general, with about 3,000 species of which only 1,270 remain extant, divided into about 370 genera.. They range from about 12 mm to the 3-meter Catlocarpio siamensis. This family of fish is one of the few that do not take care of their eggs. The family belongs to the ostariophysian order Cypriniformes, of whose genera and species the cyprinids make more than two-thirds. The family name is derived from the Ancient Greek kyprînos.
Bivalvia, in previous centuries referred to as the Lamellibranchiata and Pelecypoda, is a class of marine and freshwater molluscs that have laterally compressed bodies enclosed by a shell consisting of two hinged parts. Bivalves as a group have no head and they lack some usual molluscan organs like the radula and the odontophore. They include the clams, oysters, cockles, mussels, scallops, and numerous other families that live in saltwater, as well as a number of families that live in freshwater. The majority are filter feeders. The gills have evolved into ctenidia, specialised organs for feeding and breathing. Most bivalves bury themselves in sediment where they are relatively safe from predation. Others lie on the sea floor or attach themselves to rocks or other hard surfaces. Some bivalves, such as the scallops and file shells, can swim. The shipworms bore into wood, clay, or stone and live inside these substances.
Muricidae is a large and varied taxonomic family of small to large predatory sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks, commonly known as murex snails or rock snails. With about 1,600 living species, the Muricidae represent almost 10% of the Neogastropoda. Additionally, 1,200 fossil species have been recognized. Numerous subfamilies are recognized, although experts disagree about the subfamily divisions and the definitions of the genera. Many muricids have unusual shells which are considered attractive by shell collectors and by interior designers.
A siphon is an anatomical structure which is part of the body of aquatic molluscs in three classes: Gastropoda, Bivalvia and Cephalopoda.
Belostomatidae is a family of freshwater hemipteran insects known as giant water bugs or colloquially as toe-biters, Indian toe-biters, electric-light bugs, alligator ticks, or alligator fleas. They are the largest insects in the order Hemiptera. There are about 170 species found in freshwater habitats worldwide, with more than 110 in the Neotropics, more than 20 in Africa, almost as many in the Nearctic, and far fewer elsewhere. These predators are typically encountered in freshwater ponds, marshes and slow-flowing streams. Most species are at least 2 cm (0.8 in) long, although smaller species, down to 0.9 cm (0.35 in), also exist. The largest are members of the genus Lethocerus, which can exceed 12 cm (4.5 in) and nearly reach the length of some of the largest beetles in the world. Giant water bugs are a popular food in parts of Asia.
The Unionidae are a family of freshwater mussels, the largest in the order Unionida, the bivalve mollusks sometimes known as river mussels, or simply as unionids.
Palaeoheterodonta is a subclass of bivalve molluscs. It contains the extant orders Unionida and Trigoniida. They are distinguished by having the two halves of the shell be of equal size and shape, but by having the hinge teeth be in a single row, rather than separated into two groups, as they are in the clams and cockles.
The freshwater whitefish are fishes of the subfamily Coregoninae, which contains whitefishes and ciscoes, and is one of three subfamilies in the salmon family Salmonidae. Apart from the subfamily Coregoninae, the family Salmonidae includes the salmon, trout, and char species of the subfamily Salmoninae, and grayling species of the subfamily Thymallinae. Freshwater whitefish are distributed mainly in relatively cool waters throughout the northern parts of the Northern Hemisphere.
Hydrometridae is a family of semi-aquatic insects, known as marsh treaders or water measurers. They have a characteristic elongated head and body which makes them resemble a yardstick for measuring the water surface.
Margaritiferidae is a family of medium-sized freshwater mussels, aquatic bivalve molluscs in the order Unionida. They are known as freshwater pearl mussels, because the interior of the shell of these species has a thick layer of nacre or mother of pearl, and the mussels are thus capable of producing pearls.
Freshwater bivalves are one kind of freshwater molluscs, along with freshwater snails. They are bivalves which live in freshwater, as opposed to saltwater, the main habitat type for bivalves.
Etheriidae is a small family of medium-sized freshwater mussels, aquatic bivalve molluscs in the order Unionida. It contains two monotypic genera.
Iridinidae is a family of medium-sized freshwater mussels, aquatic bivalve mollusks in the order Unionida.
Freshwater molluscs are those members of the Phylum Mollusca which live in freshwater habitats, both lotic such as rivers, streams, canals, springs, and cave streams and lentic such as lakes, ponds, and ditches.
Hyriidae is a taxonomic family of pearly freshwater mussels, aquatic bivalve molluscs in the order Unionida. This family is native to South America, Australia, New Zealand and New Guinea. Like all members of that order, they go through a larval stage that is parasitic on fish.
Hinge teeth are part of the anatomical structure of the inner surface of a bivalve shell, i.e. the shell of a bivalve mollusk. Bivalves by definition have two valves, which are joined together by a strong and flexible ligament situated on the hinge line at the dorsal edge of the shell. In life, the shell needs to be able to open slightly to allow the foot and siphons to protrude, and then close again, without the valves moving out of alignment with one another. To make this possible, in most cases the two valves are articulated using an arrangement of structures known as hinge teeth. Like the ligament, the hinge teeth are also situated along the hinge line of the shell.
The western pearlshell is a species of freshwater bivalve, a pearl mussel, a bivalve mollusk in the family Margaritiferidae. This species is endemic to the US, where it primarily occurs west of the Rocky Mountains.
Etheria is a genus of freshwater mussels in the Etheriidae family of mollusk bivalves, and a part of the Unionida order. The genus includes a single species, Etheria elliptica, that is found throughout Africa and Madagascar.
Anodontites is a genus of freshwater mussels, aquatic bivalve mollusks in the family Mycetopodidae. Anodontites are present in South and Middle America, as far north as Mexico.
