Monofiletismo de Erythrinidae (Teleostei, Characiformes): discussão das sinapomorfias e outros caracteres diagnósticos

Abstract

The Erythrinidae are a group of Neotropical fishes with a wide distribuition in most of South and Central American river drainages. Due to their own peculiar features, its members were several times used as models in studies regarding different areas of the ichthyology. However, this group was only properly recognized as a natural unit (monophyletic group sensu Hennig, 1966) in the early nineties. Approximately 50 characters (or characters states) previously hipothetized as "diagnostic" (in a phenetic sense) or synapomorphic for the Erythrinidae were revised during this work. Among these, only nine were considered valid in delimiting the Erythrinidae as a natural group, in a phylogenetic sense. Eight further derivate exclusives characters sates of the Erythrinidae were surveyed, making a total of 17 synapomorphy for this group. Four characters sates previously hypothetized as ambiguous were corroborated, and two more were proposed. This work concludes with a revised diagnosis of the Erythrinidae family.