Careproctus Krøyer 1862:253. Type species Liparis reinhardti Krøyer 1862 by monotypy.
Diagnosis (modified from Andriashev, 2003:33). Ventral disk present, in some species very small. One pair of nostrils. Pseudobranchs absent. Pleural ribs present on posterior abdominal vertebrae, sometimes reduced. Hypural complex variably fused, sometimes a slit present in hypural plate. Temporal sensory canal with one or two suprabranchial pores, coronal pore absent. Teeth trilobed to simple, usually arranged in many rows forming bands. Pectoral girdle with two to four radials that may be notched or unnotched; interradial fenestrae present or absent. Principal caudal fin rays 4–10, auxiliary rays not more than four. Pyloric caeca 3–16, rarely absent. Abdominal vertebrae 8–12, total vertebrae 35–64. More than 50 Southern Ocean species known from littoral depths (rarely) to greater than 5500 m, usually bathyal and abyssal.
The following descriptions of Careproctus species are modified from Andriashev & Stein 1998 and Andriashev 2003.