If you are looking for something a little out of the ordinary you may like to consider the leaf fishes. These members of the family Nandidae occur in South America, Africa, and Asia.
No piece about the characoids would be complete without mentioning some of the larger, more specialized fishes. Of these, the piranhas have a worldwide reputation. They belong to the family Serrasalmidae, which includes not only the carnivorous piranhas but also some large, peaceful herbivores.
The splash tetras belong to the same family as the pencilfishes. Unfortunately the majority are rarely deliberately imported for the aquarium trade but do turn up occasionally in shipments of other fishes. The only one seen on a fairly regular basis is Copella arnoldi (Splash tetra, Jumping characin), the fish that gives the group its common name. A fairly unassuming fish to look at, males are larger, growing to 8 cm (3 1/4 in), and have more colour in their finnage than females, 6 cm.
