Seventeen species are known from fresh waters of the Himalayas, and north of them. Other genera from the same region, and with the anal sheath, are Ptychobarbus, Gymnocypris, Schizopygopsis, and Diptychus.
Gobio.—Scales of moderate size; lateral line present. Dorsal fin short, without spine. Mouth inferior; mandible not projecting beyond the upper jaw when the mouth is open; both jaws with simple lips; a small but very distinct barbel at the angle of the mouth, quite at the extremity of the maxillary. Gill-rakers very short; pseudobranchiæ. Pharyngeal teeth, 5. 3 or 2.—2 or 3. 5, hooked at the end.
The “Gudgeons” are small fishes of clear fresh waters of Europe; they are, like the barbels, animal feeders. In Eastern Asia they are represented by two closely allied genera, Ladislavia and Pseudogobio.
Ceratichthys.—Scales of moderate or small size; lateral line present. Dorsal fin short, without spine, not or but slightly in advance of the ventrals. Mouth subinferior; the lower jaw does not project beyond the upper when the mouth is open; intermaxillaries protractile from below the maxillaries; both jaws with thickish lips; a small barbel at the angle of the mouth, quite at the extremity of the maxillary. Gill-rakers very short and few in number: pseudobranchiæ. Pharyngeal teeth 4–4. hooked at the end (sometimes 4, 1—1. 4).
About ten species are known from North America; they are small, and called “Chub” in the United States. C. biguttatus is, perhaps, the most widely-diffused Freshwater-fish in the United States, and common everywhere. Breeding males have generally a red spot on each side of the head.
Other similar genera from the fresh waters of North America, and generally called “Minnows,” are Pimephales (the “Black Head”), Hyborhynchus, Hybognathus, Campostoma (the “Stone-lugger”), Ericymba, Cochlognathus, Exoglossum (the “Stone Toter” or “Cut-lips”), and Rhinichthys (the “Long-nosed Dace”).
The remaining Old World genera belonging to the group Cyprinina are Cirrhina, Dangila, Osteochilus, Barynotus, Tylognathus, Abrostomus, Crossochilus, Epalzeorhynchus, Barbichthys, Amblyrhynchichthys, Albulichthys, Aulopyge, Bungia, and Pseudorasbora.
III. Rohteichthyina.—Anal fin very short, with not more than six branched rays. Dorsal fin behind ventrals. Abdomen compressed. Lateral line running along the median line of the tail. Mouth without barbels. Pharyngeal teeth in a triple series.
One genus and species only, Rohteichthys microlepis, from Borneo and Sumatra.
IV. Leptobarbina.—Anal fin very short, with not more than six branched rays. Dorsal fin opposite to ventrals. Abdomen not compressed. Lateral line running in the lower half of the tail. Barbels present, not more than four in number. Pharyngeal teeth in a triple series.