the few types of the hatchet-stomachs or hatchet-stomach-fish has a quite similar look. The back-line of the at the side strongly compressed fish is almost straight and horizontal while the stomach-line is bent strongly downward. Definitely, this body-form becomes through the mighty, disk-shaped formation of the breastbone, that offers a wide base-surface to the also powerfully developed flipper-musculature. This musculature amounts one quarter of the weight what lets closed already on a special function and capability. The flippers even are wing-nicely extended, the stomach-fins against it only small.
The hatchet-stomachs belong to the smaller Salmlerarten; in its tropical home-waters, they usually gain maximum-lengths very much smaller until 9 cm, that remain in aquariums of in the habit of copies.
Way of life The odd body-form means an adaptation at a life in the most uppermost water-layers. they live in swarms under the water-surface, from where it erhaschen itself also the food with its upper-continuous mouth. Like almost all Salmler, they are robbers.
Here, also that of so well developed breast-musculature, that causes the "hatchet-form", becomes explicable. With danger namely, they can hurl themselves from the water through powerful palpitation with the flippers and some meters wide densely over the water level with buzzing fin-hits there-glides. This way, they can elude its persecutors quite effectively.
System One allots three types the hatchet-stomachs: Carnegiella (3 types), Gasteropelecus (3 types) and Thoracocharax (2 types).
To the attitude in one well covered, quiet society-basins can be recommended it very much, since they claim only a smaller habitat in the restricted area-offer of the aquarium as pure surface-fish. Moreover, one swarm this little fish looks extremely decorative; some swimming-plants as hiding place-possibility should exist.
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