Creatures in Crisis
Photograph of Naked characin (Gymnocharacinus bergii), recorded as Critically Endangered
Naked characin (Gymnocharacinus bergii). Image via Wikimedia Commons.

Critically Endangered

Naked characin

Gymnocharacinus bergii

Naked characin is a characin in the family Characidae (order Characiformes) — Gymnocharacinus bergii, recorded as Critically Endangered.

Status
Critically Endangered
Scientific name
Gymnocharacinus bergii
Taxonomy
Characiformes · Characidae · Gymnocharacinus

The characin

The naked tetra attains a maximum total length of 7.5 cm (3.0 in).

Range and habitat

This taxon is the southernmost member of the family (together with some Cheirodon species from Chile) and it is endemic to the headwaters of a stream near Valcheta in northern Patagonia, Argentina, that flow from a thermal spring. It is endangered because of competition from the Uruguay tetra (Cheirodon interruptus) and predation from the rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss), both being invasive species within the naked tetra's restricted range.

Pins are Wikidata “endemic to” fields. Orange dots, when present, are GBIF occurrence tiles — survey bias included.

Habits

Characiforms school or hold small territories in Neotropical rivers. Many named tetras are known from one drainage that can be silted or dammed.

In crisis

Naked characin is Critically Endangered on this catalog because that is the IUCN category stored on Wikidata. Confirm the official criteria and any later count on iucnredlist.org.

Sources

Written for this catalog from the English Wikipedia article on Naked characin, Wikidata item Q3318187. Family and order context is original field-guide writing about the group, not a copied assessment of this one species. Wikipedia text is CC BY-SA. Not an IUCN assessment. Counts, when quoted, can change — confirm them on the recovery programme and on iucnredlist.org.

Photograph via Wikimedia Commons. Wikipedia · Wikidata · IUCN Red List.

Also in this catalog

Photograph of Vaquita (Phocoena sinus), recorded as Critically EndangeredCR

Vaquita

Phocoena sinus
Photograph of Javan rhinoceros (Rhinoceros sondaicus), recorded as Critically EndangeredCR

Javan rhinoceros

Rhinoceros sondaicus
Photograph of Sumatran orangutan (Pongo abelii), recorded as Critically EndangeredCR

Sumatran orangutan

Pongo abelii
Photograph of Axolotl (Ambystoma mexicanum), recorded as Critically EndangeredCR

Axolotl

Ambystoma mexicanum

Quick answers

What is Naked characin?
Naked characin is a characin in the family Characidae (order Characiformes) — Gymnocharacinus bergii.
What is the conservation status of Naked characin?
Critically Endangered, as the IUCN category stored on Wikidata for Gymnocharacinus bergii. Confirm the official assessment on iucnredlist.org.
Where does Naked characin live?
This taxon is the southernmost member of the family (together with some Cheirodon species from Chile) and it is endemic to the headwaters of a stream near Valcheta in northern Patagonia, Argentina, that flow from a thermal spring.
Why is Naked characin in crisis?
It is endangered because of competition from the Uruguay tetra (Cheirodon interruptus) and predation from the rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss), both being invasive species within the naked tetra's restricted range.
Is this the IUCN Red List page for Gymnocharacinus bergii?
No. This is a researched catalog account. The Red List is the assessment.
Is Naked characin a pet?
An animal on this catalog is in crisis in the wild. Keeping one is usually the wrong question.