Cyprinodontidae

/ˌsɪp.rɪ.noʊ.ˈdɑn.tɪ.di/ noun

Definition

The family name for cyprinodont fish, a taxonomic classification encompassing hundreds of species of small freshwater fishes.

Etymology

From Modern Latin, combining Cyprinodon (genus name) with -idae (the standard family-level suffix in biological taxonomy). Established in the 19th century to classify these distinctive fish.

Kelly Says

The Cyprinodontidae family contains some of the world's rarest fish—many species live in single springs or isolated desert pools, making them evolutionary laboratories where you can watch a single population become a completely new species in just hundreds of years.

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