Revised 30 April 2024
PDF version (with illustrations and additional information)
Bagrichthys Bleeker 1857 Bagrus, referring to Bleeker’s original placement of B. hypselopterus in that genus; ichthýs (ἰχθύς), fish
Bagrichthys hypselopterus (Bleeker 1852) high-finned, from hypsēlós (Gr. ὑψηλός), high, and pterus, from pterón (Gr. πτερόν) or ptéryx (πτέρυξ), fin, referring to long dorsal-fin spine, up to twice as high as the body
Bagrichthys macracanthus (Bleeker 1854) makrós (Gr. μακρός), long or large; acanthus (L.), from ákantha (Gr. ἄκανθα), thorn, referring to its dorsal-fin spine, longer than length of head
Bagrichthys macropterus (Bleeker 1854) big-finned, from makrós (Gr. μακρός), long or large, and pterus, from pterón (Gr. πτερόν) or ptéryx (πτέρυξ), fin, referring to its long adipose fin, four times longer than dorsal fin
Bagrichthys majusculus Ng 2002 Latin for somewhat greater, referring to relatively larger adipose-fin base and pectoral and dorsal fins when compared with B. macracanthus, its closest congener
Bagrichthys micranodus Roberts 1989 micro-, from mikrós (Gr. μικρός), small, referring to its small size (up to 125 mm); án– (ἄν), Greek privative, i.e., not, and odoús (Gr. ὀδούς), tooth, referring to “virtually toothless jaws”
Bagrichthys obscurus Ng 1999 Latin for dark (Ng said indistinct), referring to its uniform brown coloration
Bagrichthys vaillantii (Popta 1906) in honor of French zoologist Léon Vaillant (1834–1914), Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle (Paris), who described this species in 1902 but used a preoccupied name
Bagroides Bleeker 1851 –oides, Neo-Latin from eī́dos (Gr. εἶδος), form or shape: Bagrus, i.e., a bagrid catfish
Bagroides melapterus Bleeker 1851 black-finned, from mélas (μέλας), black, and pterus, from pterón (Gr. πτερόν) or ptéryx (πτέρυξ), fin, referring to “violet-black” coloration on rayed dorsal, pectoral, ventral and anal fins, and “black-violet” border on caudal fin (translations)
Bagrus Bosc 1816 latinization of bagre, which, according to Markgraf (1648), is a Portuguese word for catfish used in Brazil (possibly first applied to the marine ariid Bagre bagre)
Bagrus bajad (Fabricius 1775) from bajâd, Arabic name for this catfish along the Nile River in Egypt [authorship often given as (Forsskål 1775)]
Bagrus caeruleus Roberts & Stewart 1976 Latin for dark blue (but used here to mean blue in general), referring to bluish color of back and sides
Bagrus degeni Boulenger 1906 in honor of Swiss ornithologist Edward Degen (1852–1923), who “utilized his leisure” while serving as an assistant to Prof. E. A. Minchin in Uganda and collected holotype
Bagrus docmak (Fabricius 1775) from docmak or doqmâk, Arabic name for this catfish along the Lower Nile river delta, Egypt [authorship often given as (Forsskål 1775)]
Bagrus filamentosus Pellegrin 1924 Latin for filamentous, referring to first branched dorsal-fin ray prolonged into a long filament and succeeding rays into shorter filaments; name may also refer to filaments sometimes present on pectoral fins
Bagrus lubosicus Lönnberg 1924 –icus (L.), belonging to: Lubosi River, Democratic Republic of the Congo, type locality
Bagrus meridionalis Günther 1894 Latin for southern, presumably referring to its distribution south of the nilotic B. bajad in the upper Shire River of Malawi
Bagrus orientalis Boulenger 1902 Latin for eastern, presumably referring to its occurrence along the Zanzibar coast of Tanzania in East Africa
Bagrus ubangensis Boulenger 1902 –ensis, Latin suffix denoting place: Ubangi River, Democratic Republic of the Congo, type locality
Bagrus urostigma Vinciguerra 1895 uro, from ourá (Gr. οὐρά), tail; stígma (Gr. στίγμα), mark or spot, referring to black spots on caudal fin
Batasio Blyth 1860 tautonymous with Pimelodus batasio Hamilton 1822 (see species)
Batasio affinis Blyth 1860 Latin for related, “Exceedingly like” B. buchanani (=B. batasio)
Batasio batasio (Hamilton 1822) batasio or batashi, local Bengali names for this catfish in India
Batasio convexirostrum Darshan, Anganthoibi & Vishwanath 2011 convexus (L.), rounded or curving out; rostrum (L.), snout, presumably referring to its rounded snout (not mentioned in description but clearly evident in photo of paratype) and/or to its overall convex dorsal profile [although formed as a noun, authors say name is an adjective]
Batasio dayi (Vinciguerra 1890) in memory of Francis Day (1830–1889), Inspector-General of Fisheries in India and author of “Fishes of India” (1889), an “illustrious naturalist” (translation), for his many valuable contributions to the ichthyology of India
Batasio elongatus Ng 2004 Latin for prolonged, referring to its relatively slender body and long snout
Batasio fasciolatus Ng 2006 diminutive of fasciatus (L.), banded, i.e., with small bands, referring to six vertical dark brown bars on head and body
Batasio feruminatus Ng & Kottelat 2008 Latin for welded, referring to contact between dorsal and adipose fins, unique in the genus
Batasio flavus Plamoottil 2015 Latin for yellow, referring to the color of its body and fins
Batasio fluviatilis (Day 1888) Latin for riverine or of a river, presumably referring to its type locality, described as a “stream”
Batasio macronotus Ng & Edds 2004 macro-, from makrós (Gr. μακρός), long or large; notus, from nṓtos (Gr. νῶτος), back, referring to its long adipose fin compared with B. batasio
Batasio merianiensis (Chaudhuri 1913) –ensis, Latin suffix denoting place: presumably a variant spelling of Mariani, referring to Mariani Junction, Assam, India, type locality
Batasio pakistanicus Mirza & Jan 1989 –icus (L.), belonging to: Pakistan, where it is endemic to the Indus River basin
Batasio procerus Ng 2008 Latin for high, long or tall, referring to its elongate caudal peduncle
Batasio sharavatiensis Bhatt & Jayaram 2004 –ensis, Latin suffix denoting place: Sharavati River, India, type locality
Batasio spilurus Ng 2006 spílos (Gr. σπίλος), mark or spot; urus, from ourá (Gr. οὐρά), tail, referring to distinct spot at base of caudal peduncle
Batasio tengana (Hamilton 1822) presumably local Bengali name for this species in India
Batasio tigrinus Ng & Kottelat 2001 Latin for tiger-like, referring to its striped coloration
Batasio travancoria Hora & Law 1941 –ia (L. suffix), belonging to: Travancore, a former Hindu feudal kingdom, now Kerala, India, where this catfish occurs
Coreobagrus Mori 1936 Corea, alternate spelling of Korea, where C. brevicorpus is endemic; Bagrus, type genus of family, i.e., a Korean bagrid
Coreobagrus brevicorpus Mori 1936 brevis (L.), short; corpus (L.), body, referring to its “rather short and compressed” body
Coreobagrus ichikawai Okada & Kubota 1957 in honor of Japanese platyhelminthologist Atsuhiko Ichikawa (1904–1991), Hokkaido University, the junior author’s “venefactor” [sic, benefactor] in college
Hemibagrus Bleeker 1862 hemi-, from hḗmisys (Gr. ἥμισυς), half, i.e., a genus resembling, closely related to, and/or previously referred to as Bagrus
Hemibagrus baramensis (Regan 1906) –ensis, Latin suffix denoting place: Baram River, Borneo, type locality
Hemibagrus bongan (Popta 1904) named for the Bongan River, central Borneo, type locality
Hemibagrus capitulum (Popta 1906) Latin for a little head, proposed as a “variety” of H. fortis with a slightly smaller head [date often incorrectly given as 1904]
Hemibagrus caveatus Ng, Wirjoatmodjo & Hadiaty 2001 Latin for caged, referring to dark vertical and horizontal stripes on sides, which resemble bars of a cage
Hemibagrus centralus Mai 1978 etymology not explained nor evident, probably a variant spelling of centralis (L.), central, perhaps referring to its type locality, Quang Bình Province, which is in central Vietnam
Hemibagrus divaricatus Ng & Kottelat 2013 Latin for spread apart, referring to relatively large distance between dorsal and adipose fins
Hemibagrus filamentus (Fang & Chaux 1949) variant spelling of filamentosus,Latin for filamentous, referring to filamentous extensions of first 3–4 branched rays of dorsal fin, their total height equal to length of head
Hemibagrus fortis (Popta 1904) Latin for strong, allusion not explained, possibly referring to its rugose head shield, characteristic of the genus
Hemibagrus gracilis Ng & Ng 1995 Latin for thin or slender, referring to proportionally more elongate body compared to H. planiceps, its closest congener
Hemibagrus guttatus (Lacepède 1803) Latin for spotted, referring to small blackish spots irregularly scattered on almost all parts of the body
Hemibagrus hainanensis (Tchang 1935) –ensis, Latin suffix denoting place: Hainan Island, China, where it is endemic
Hemibagrus hoevenii (Bleeker 1846) patronym not identified but almost certainly in honor of Bleeker’s Dutch colleague, zoologist Jan van der Hoeven (1801–1868), whom he had honored with several other names
Hemibagrus imbrifer Ng & Ferraris 2000 Latin for rainy, referring to arrangement of sensory pores in vertical columns on sides of body
Hemibagrus lacustrinus Ng & Kottelat 2013 Latin for belonging to or living in lakes or ponds, referring to Danau Singkarak, a tectonic lake, and its outflow, in central-west Sumatra, where it is endemic
Hemibagrus macropterus Bleeker 1870 big-finned, from makrós (Gr. μακρός), long or large, and pterus, from pterón (Gr. πτερόν) or ptéryx (πτέρυξ), fin, referring to its long adipose fin
Hemibagrus maydelli (Rössel 1964) in honor of German ecologist and biogeographer Gustav Adolf von Maydell (1919–1959), University of Hamburg, who collected holotype
Hemibagrus menoda (Hamilton 1822) local name for this species in Bangladesh
Hemibagrus microphthalmus (Day 1877) small-eyed, from micro-, from mikrós (Gr. μικρός), small, and ophthalmós (Gr. ὀφθαλμός), eye, presumably referring to eye diameter 1/6 length of head
Hemibagrus nemurus (Valenciennes 1840) thread-tailed, from nḗma (Gr. νῆμα), thread, and ourá (Gr. οὐρά), tail, presumably referring to thread-like extension of upper caudal-fin lobe
Hemibagrus olyroides (Roberts 1989) –oides, Neo-Latin from eī́dos (Gr. εἶδος), form or shape: referring to superficial resemblance to (and possible relationship with) Olyra
Hemibagrus peguensis (Boulenger 1894) –ensis, Latin suffix denoting place: Pegu (now called Bago), referring to Bago Region of Myanmar, type locality
Hemibagrus planiceps (Valenciennes 1840) planus (L.), flat; –ceps (Neo-Latin), headed, referring to its “remarquable” flat head
Hemibagrus pluriradiatus (Vaillant 1892) pluris (L.), more; radiatus (L.), rayed, having more dorsal-fin rays than other species of Macrones (a catch-all genus of Indian bagrids, now a synonym of Sperata) known at the time
Hemibagrus punctatus (Jerdon 1849) Latin for spotted, referring to row of black spots on sides
Hemibagrus sabanus (Inger & Chin 1959) –anus (L.), belonging to: Sabah, local name for North Borneo (Malaysia and Indonesia), where it is endemic
Hemibagrus semotus Ng & Kottelat 2013 Latin for pushed aside, referring to the relatively large distance between its dorsal and adipose fins
Hemibagrus spilopterus Ng & Rainboth 1999 spílos (Gr. σπίλος), mark or spot; ptera, from ptéryx (πτέρυξ), fin, referring to black spot on adipose fin
Hemibagrus variegatus Ng & Ferraris 2000 Latin for “of different sorts,” particularly colors, referring to irregular dark-brown markings on sides
Hemibagrus velox Tan & Ng 2000 Latin for fast, referring to its habitat (fast-flowing streams and rivers)
Hemibagrus vietnamicus Mai 1978 –icus (L.), belonging to: described from mountain streams in northern Vietnam (also occurs in Laos)
Hemibagrus wyckii (Bleeker 1858) in honor of Herman Constantijn Van der Wijck (1815–1889), Knight of the Order of the Netherlands Lion, Regent of the Preanger Regencies, Java, Indonesia (type locality), who invited Bleeker to a fishing party in which the river was poisoned with “akar toeba” (a plant whose roots contain the ichthyocide rotenone) and large masses of stunned fishes were ladled from the water [a regency is a rural area, larger than a city; a regent is its leader, similar to a mayor]
Hemibagrus wyckioides (Fang & Chaux 1949) –oides, Neo-Latin from eī́dos (Gr. εἶδος), form or shape: closely resembling M. wyckii
Hemileiocassis Ng & Lim 2000 hemi-, from hḗmisys (Gr. ἥμισυς), half, referring to its close resemblance to Leiocassis
Hemileiocassis panjang Ng & Lim 2000 Malay for long, referring to its elongate body shape
Hyalobagrus Ng & Kottelat 1998 hýalos (Gr. ὕαλος), glass, but here meaning transparent, referring to translucent body; Bagrus, type genus of Bagridae
Hyalobagrus flavus Ng & Kottelat 1998 Latin for yellow, referring to its coloration in life
Hyalobagrus leiacanthus Ng & Kottelat 1998 leí̄os (Gr. λεῖος) smooth; acanthus (L.), from ákantha (Gr. ἄκανθα), thorn, referring to lack of serrations on anterior edge of pectoral spine
Hyalobagrus ornatus (Duncker 1904) Latin for adorned or decorated, referring to brown longitudinal stripe and black spots on translucent body
Leiocassis Bleeker 1857 leí̄os (Gr. λεῖος) smooth; cassis (L.), metal helmet, referring to covering of skin and muscle on head
Leiocassis aculeata Ng & Hadiaty 2005 Latin for sharp-pointed or stinging, referring to large spines compared to L. micropogon
Leiocassis bekantan Ng & Tan 2018 Indonesian vernacular for the Proboscis Monkey Nasalis larvatus from Borneo (where type locality of this catfish is situated), distinguished by its enlarged and very prominent nose, alluding to prominent snout of this catfish when compared with congeners
Leiocassis collina Ng & Lim 2006 Latin for hilly, referring to hillstream habitat in northeast Borneo
Leiocassis micropogon (Bleeker 1852) micro-, from mikrós (Gr. μικρός), small; pṓgōn (Gr. πώγων), beard, referring to its eight slender barbels
Leiocassis poeciloptera (Valenciennes 1840) poecilio-, from poikílos (Gr. ποικίλος), varicolored, and ptera, from pterón (Gr. πτερόν) or ptéryx (πτέρυξ), fin (treated as an adjective, finned), presumably referring to broad black-brown bands on yellow fins
Leiocassis rudicula Ng & Hadiaty 2019 Latin for a wooden spoon or spatula, referring to distinct concavity on dorsolateral profile of head, which is reminiscent of a spoon
Leiocassis tenebrica Ng & Lim 2006 Latin for dark or gloomy, referring to its uniform brown coloration
Mystus Scopoli 1777 latinization of mýstax (Gr. μύσταξ), moustache, dating to at least Belon’s De Aquatilibus (1553) to describe all fishes with whiskers
Mystus abbreviatus (Valenciennes 1840) Latin for shortened, possibly referring to its stocky body (“le corps trapu”)
Mystus alasensis Ng & Hadiaty 2005 –ensis, Latin suffix denoting place: Sungai Alas (Alas River), Aceh, Sumatra, only known area of occurrence
Mystus albolineatus Roberts 1994 albus (L.), white; lineatus (L.), lined, referring to white midlateral stripe or line that runs length of lateral-line canal
Mystus ankutta Pethiyagoda, Silva & Maduwage 2008 Sinhalese name for small catfishes
Mystus armatus (Day 1865) Latin for armed with a weapon, referring to its serrated to pectoral-fin spines, which inflict “much dreaded” wounds
Mystus armiger Ng 2004 arma (L.), weapons; –iger (L.), to have or bear, referring to large serrations on pectoral spines
Mystus atrifasciatus Fowler 1937 atri-, from ater (L.), black; fasciatus (L.), banded, referring to distinct, dark lateral band traversing the lateral line
Mystus bimaculatus (Volz 1904) bi-, from bis (L.), twice; maculatus (L.), spotted, referring to black spot behind gill opening, similar to the silurid catfish Callichrous (=Ompok) bimaculatus
Mystus bleekeri (Day 1877) in honor of Dutch Army surgeon and ichthyologist Pieter Bleeker (1819–1878), who reported this catfish as M. keletius in 1853
Mystus bocourti (Bleeker 1864) in honor of French zoologist and artist Marie Firmin Bocourt (1819–1904), who collected holotype and/or sent specimens to Bleeker for his review
Mystus canarensis Grant 1999 –ensis, Latin suffix denoting place: Canara, southern India, type locality [replacement name for Hara malabarica Day 1865, secondarily preoccupied in Mystus by Bagrus malabaricus Jerdon 1849]
Mystus carcio (Hamilton 1822) presumably local Bengali name for this species in India
Mystus castaneus Ng 2002 Latin for chestnut-brown, referring to color of body and dorsal surface of head
Mystus catapogon Plamoottil 2016 from katápṓgōn (Gr. κατάπώγων), long-bearded, referring to long maxillary (reaching beyond caudal-fin base) and mandibular (reaching ventral-fin base) barbels
Mystus cavasius (Hamilton 1822) latinization of Kavasi, from Kavasi tenggara, local Hindi name for this species in India
Mystus celator Ng & Kottelat 2023 Latin for concealer or hider, referring to its close similarity to (and misidentification with) M. pulcher
Mystus cineraceus Ng & Kottelat 2009 Latin for ashen, referring to ash-like (gray) coloration
Mystus cyrusi Esmaeili, Sayyadzadeh, Zarei, Eagderi & Mousavi-Sabet 2022 in honor of Cyrus the Great (d. 530 BC), king of Persia (this catfish is endemic to southern Iran)
Mystus dibrugarensis (Chaudhuri 1913) –ensis, Latin suffix denoting place: Dibrugarh, Assam, India, type locality
Mystus falcarius Chakrabarty & Ng 2005 –ius (L.), adjectival suffix: falk (L.), scythe or sickle, referring to both markedly concave dorsoposterior margin of dorsal fin and crescent-shaped humeral mark
Mystus gulio (Hamilton 1822) latinization of Guli, local Bengali name for this species in India
Mystus heoki Plamoottil & Abraham 2013 in honor of the “eminent scientist” Heok Hee Ng, National University of Singapore, for his many contributions to the taxonomy of catfishes
Mystus horai Jayaram 1954 in honor of Indian ichthyologist Sunder Lal Hora (1896–1955), Director, Zoological Survey of India, who collected holotype
Mystus impluviatus Ng 2003 of or referring to an impluvium (L.), a small court open to the sky (Ng says skylight, used as a noun), referring to second posterior fontanel on supraoccipital
Mystus indicus Plamoottil & Abraham 2013 –icus (L.), belonging to: India, where it occurs in the Manimala River drainage of Kerala
Mystus irulu Vijayakrishnan & Praveenraj 2022 Kannada (official language of the state of Karnataka, India, type locality) word meaning dark, referring to its uniformly black coloration
Mystus keletius (Valenciennes 1840) latinization of kéléti, local Pondichery name for this catfish (and for M. cavasius) in India
Mystus keralai Plamoottil & Abraham 2014 of Kerala, India, where it occurs in the Manimala River drainage
Mystus leucophasis (Blyth 1860) leuco-, from leukós (Gr. λευκός), white; phásis (Gr. φάσις), appearance, referring to its “remarkable” coloring, “the head and fore-part of the body being bright silky-white above”
Mystus malabaricus (Jerdon 1849) –icus (L.), belonging to: Malabar (i.e., southern India), where it occurs
Mystus menoni Plamoottil & Abraham 2013 in honor of “eminent scientist” Ambat Gopalan Kutty Menon (1921–2002), Zoological Survey of India, for his contributions to the taxonomy of freshwater fishes in India
Mystus misrai Anuradha 1986 patronym not identified but almost certainly in honor of Indian ichthyologist K. S. Misra (1900–1999), who, with Sunder Lal Hora, identified this catfish as M. halepensis colvillii (=pelusius) in 1943
Mystus montanus (Jerdon 1849) Latin for pertaining to mountains, allusion not explained, probably referring to its occurrence in hill or mountain streams
Mystus multiradiatus Roberts 1992 multi– (L.), many; radiatus (L.), rayed, referring to >40 gill rakers on first gill arch, more than any congener known at time except M. mysticetus
Mystus mysticetus Roberts 1992 generic name of baleen whales, referring to its numerous slender, baleen-like gill rakers
Mystus nanus Sudasinghe, Pethiyagoda, Maduwage & Meegaskumbura 2016 Latin for a dwarf, referring to its diminutive size when compared with M. vittatus, with which it had been misidentified
Mystus ngasep Darshan, Vishwanath, Mahanta & Barat 2011 local Manipuri name for this fish in Manipur, India
Mystus nigriceps (Valenciennes 1840) nigra (L.), dark or black; –ceps (Neo-Latin), headed, referring to its blackish head
Mystus oculatus (Valenciennes 1840) Latin for eyed, presumably referring to its large eyes, “almost a third of the length of the head and hardly a diameter between the two eyes” (translation)
Mystus pelusius (Solander 1794) etymology not explained, presumably derived from pēlós (Gr. πηλός), mud or mire, referring to its occurrence in muddy waters
Mystus prabini Darshan, Abujam, Kumar, Parhi, Singh, Vishwanath, Das & Pandey 2019 in honor of the late Prabin Kumar Mahanta, former Director of the Directorate of Coldwater Fisheries Research (Bhimtal, India), for his “substantial contribution to the development of the cold-water fisheries sector in the Himalayan regions of India”
Mystus pulcher (Chaudhuri 1911) Latin for beautiful, presumably referring to coloration, highlighted by two “conspicuous and intensely black circular blotches” on sides
Mystus punctifer Ng, Wirjoatmodjo & Hadiaty 2001 punctum (L.), spot; fero (L.), to have or bear, referring to its prominent humeral spot
Mystus rhegma Fowler 1935 rhêgma (Gr. ῥῆγμα), breach or fracture, referring to distinct notch (1/7 length of adipose fin) between dorsal and adipose fins
Mystus rubripinnis Vanarajan & Arunachalam 2018 rubrum (L.), red; pinnis, Neo-Latin adjective of pinna (L.), fin, i.e., finned, referring to brick-red color of fins in life (and remaining even after several years of preservation)
Mystus rufescens (Vinciguerra 1890) Latin for reddish, referring to its reddish-brown body coloration
Mystus seengtee (Sykes 1839) Marathi vernacular for this species in India, which, as Sykes explained in 1841, he adopted “so that naturalists who travel the country can always obtain” the species
Mystus singaringan (Bleeker 1846) from Ikan Singaringan, local Malay name for this species (ikan = fish)
Mystus tengara (Hamilton 1822) local Bengali name for this species in India
Mystus velifer Ng 2012 velum (L.), sail; fero (L.), to have or bear, referring to relatively elongate first dorsal-fin ray
Mystus vittatus (Bloch 1794) Latin for banded, referring to light-blue stripes on sides
Mystus wolffii (Bleeker 1851) in honor of Bleeker’s friend J. Wolff, military doctor, who collected holotype
Mystus zeylanicus Ng & Pethiyagoda 2013 –icus (L.), belonging to: Zeylan, an early Dutch name for Sri Lanka, where it is endemic
Olyra McClelland 1842 etymology not explained, presumably from ólyra (Gr. ὄλυρα), spelt, or Olyra Linneaus 1759, a genus of neotropical grasses, probably referring to similarity of some spelt or Olyra leaves (pointed at one end) to pointed upper caudal-fin lobe of O. longicaudata
Olyra astrifera Arunachalam, Raja, Mayden & Chandran 2013 aster (L.) or astér (Gr. αστέρ), star; fero (L.), to have or bear, referring to star-shaped dots all over body
Olyra burmanica Day 1872 –ica (L.), belonging to: Burma (now Myanmar), where it is endemic
Olyra horae (Prashad & Mukerji 1929) patronym not identified but clearly in honor of Indian ichthyologist Sunder Lal Hora (1896–1955), Zoological Survey of India [although named after a man, “ae” is an acceptable way to form a genitive from nouns that end in “a”]
Olyra longicaudata McClelland 1842 longus (L.), long; caudata (L.), tailed, probably referring to middle rays of the tail “prolonged to a lengthened point”
Olyra parviocula Kosygin, Shangningam & Gopi 2018 parvus (L.), small; oculus (L.) eye (but unnecessarily feminized as ocula), referring to smaller eyes compared with congeners
Olyra praestigiosa Ng & Ferraris 2016 Latin for “full of deceitful tricks,” referring to the confusion surrounding its identity (previously reported under three different names)
Olyra saginata Ng, Lalramliana & Lalthanzara 2014 Latin for fattened, crammed or feasted, referring to relatively deep body compared with congeners from northeastern part of Indian subcontinent
Pseudomystus Jayaram 1968 pseudo-, from pseúdēs (Gr. ψεύδης), false, proposed as a subgenus of Leiocassis, with features that resemble Mystus and represent a “transitional stage in the evolution” of Pseudomystus from the “more generalized” Mystus
Pseudomystus bomboides Kottelat 2000 –oides, Neo-Latin from eī́dos (Gr. εἶδος), form or shape: Bombus, bumblebee genus, referring to its barred color pattern
Pseudomystus breviceps (Regan 1913) brevis (L.), short; –ceps (Neo-Latin), headed, presumably referring to head “nearly as broad as long,” compared with “longer than broad” on several other congeners
Pseudomystus carnosus Ng & Lim 2005 Latin for fleshy, referring to its robust body compared with P. moeschii
Pseudomystus flavipinnis Ng & Rachmatika 1999 flavus (L.), yellow; pinnis, Neo-Latin adjective of pinna (L.), fin, i.e., finned, referring to “uniformly yellow” caudal fin
Pseudomystus fumosus Ng & Lim 2005 Latin for smoky (authors say smoke, used as an adjective) referring to uniform grayish-brown body
Pseudomystus funebris Ng 2010 Latin for funereal (i.e., clothed in black), referring to its blackwater habitat
Pseudomystus heokhuii Lim & Ng 2008 in honor of ichthyologist Heok Hui Tan, National University of Singapore, who brought this species to the authors’ attention
Pseudomystus inornatus (Boulenger 1894) Latin for undecorated or unadorned, referring to its uniform dark-brown coloration
Pseudomystus leiacanthus (Weber & de Beaufort 1912) leí̄os (Gr. λεῖος) smooth; acanthus (L.), from ákantha (Gr. ἄκανθα), thorn, referring to smooth (not serrated) dorsal-fin spine
Pseudomystus mahakamensis (Vaillant 1902) –ensis, Latin suffix denoting place: Mahakam River, eastern Kalimantan, Borneo, Indonesia, type locality
Pseudomystus moeschii (Boulenger 1890) in honor of Swiss geologist Casimir Moesch (also spelled Mösch, 1827–1899), who collected holotype
Pseudomystus myersi (Roberts 1989) in honor of Stanford University ichthyologist George S. Myers (1905–1985), Roberts’ teacher and himself a student of Asian fishes
Pseudomystus robustus (Inger & Chin 1959) Latin for of oak or oaken and, by extension, hard, firm or solid (but often used by ichthyologists to mean fat or stout), referring to its robust body shape
Pseudomystus rugosus (Regan 1913) Latin for wrinkled or shrivelled, “upper surface of head, behind the orbits, naked, rugose”
Pseudomystus siamensis (Regan 1913) –ensis, Latin suffix denoting place: Siam, or Thailand, where type locality (Bangpakong River, Chao Phraya basin) is situated (also, holotype “received in 1897 from the Royal Siamese Museum”)
Pseudomystus sobrinus Ng & Freyhof 2005 Latin for a cousin on the mother’s side, referring to its close resemblance to P. siamensis
Pseudomystus stenogrammus Ng & Siebert 2005 sténos (Gr. στένος), narrow; grammus, from grammḗ (Gr. γραμμή), line or stroke of the pen, referring to thin white line along lateral line
Pseudomystus stenomus (Valenciennes 1840) sténos (Gr. στένος), narrow; hṓmos (Gr. ὦμος), shoulder (humeral region?), allusion not explained nor evident
Pseudomystus vaillanti (Regan 1913) in honor of French zoologist Léon Vaillant (1834–1914), Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle (Paris), who reported this species as P. moeschii in 1902
Rama Bleeker 1858 tautonymous with Pimelodus rama Hamilton 1822
Rama chandramara (Hamilton 1822) etymology not explained, perhaps derived from Chandragupta Maurya (340–298 BC), founder of the Mauryan Empire and the first emperor to unify India into one state
Rama rama (Hamilton 1822) etymology not explained, possibly named for Rama, the seventh avatar of Vishnu (Hinduism), or perhaps a diminutive of Rama chandramara, which Hamilton said it “strongly resembles”
Sperata Holly 1939 [i]a– (L. suffix), belonging to: Maria Adolfine Sperat, Holly’s late mother-in-law, who had supported Holly’s studies with “great understanding” or “sympathy” (depending on the translation) [replacement name for Macrones Duméril 1856, preoccupied by Macrones Newman 1841 in Coleoptera]
Sperata acicularis Ferraris & Runge 1999 Latin for needle-like, referring to the long, slender supraoccipital spine that most readily distinguishes it from its congeners
Sperata aor (Hamilton 1822) aor (also spelled auri and arii), local Bengali name for this species in India
Sperata aorella (Blyth 1858) –ella (L.), a diminutive suffix, referring to similarity (“Hitherto confounded”) to S. aor
Sperata aorides (Jerdon 1849) –oides, Neo-Latin from eī́dos (Gr. εἶδος), form or shape: described as “nearly allied” to S. aor
Sperata lamarrii (Valenciennes 1840) in honor of French explorer and naturalist August Lamarre-Picquot (1785–1873, also spelled Lamare-Picquot), who collected holotype
Sperata seenghala (Sykes 1839) Marathi vernacular for this species in India, which, as Sykes explained in 1841, he adopted “so that naturalists who travel the country can always obtain” the species
Sundolyra Ng, Hadiaty, Lundberg & Luckenbill 2015 Sunda, referring to Sunda Shelf, southeast extension of continental shelf of Southeast Asia, where it occurs (northwestern Sumatra); Olyra, genus to which it is most similar
Sundolyra latebrosa Ng, Hadiaty, Lundberg & Luckenbill 2015 Latin for hidden or secret, referring to its cryptic nature and apparent rarity
Tachysurus Lacepède 1803 tachýs (Gr. ταχύς), swift; urus, from ourá (Gr. οὐρά), tail, referring to presumed agility of T. sinensis based on its “long and nimble” tail (translation)
Tachysurus adiposalis (Oshima 1919) scientific Neo-Latin for adiposal, referring to its long adipose fin, much longer than anal fin
Tachysurus albomarginatus (Rendahl 1928) albus (L.), white; marginatus (L.), edged or margined, referring to white edges on dorsal, pelvic and caudal fins
Tachysurus analis (Nichols 1930) Latin for anal, referring to longer anal fin compared to Leiocassis (=Pelteobagrus) ussuriensis
Tachysurus argentivittatus (Regan 1905) argentum (L.), silver; vittatus (L.), banded, referring to silver lateral band extending from opercle to base of caudal fin
Tachysurus aurantiacus (Temminck & Schlegel 1846) Latin for orange-colored, referring to its “bright orange-yellow” color (translation) in life
Tachysurus brachyrhabdion (Cheng, Ishihara & Zhang 2008) brachýs (Gr. βραχύς), short; rhabdíon (Gr. ῥαβδίον), barbel, referring to shorter maxillary barbel compared to other congeners with a truncate or slightly emarginated caudal fin
Tachysurus brashnikowi (Berg 1907) in honor of Russian ichthyologist and fisheries chief Vladimir Konstantinovich Bražnikov (or Brashnikov, 1870–1921), who organized several expeditions in the Amur River basin and collected holotype
Tachysurus brevianalis (Regan 1908) brevis (L.), short; analis (L.), anal, referring to shorter anal fin compared to Pseudobagrus aurantiacus, its presumed congener at the time
Tachysurus brevicaudatus (Wu 1930) brevis (L.), short; caudatus (L.), tailed, referring to shorter caudal peduncle compared to T. emarginatus
Tachysurus brevirostris (Nguyen 2005) brevis (L.), short; rostris, Neo-Latin scientific adjective of rostrum (L.), snout, referring to its short and blunt snout, shorter than postorbital length [species inquirenda, provisionally included here]
Tachysurus crassilabris (Günther 1864) crassus (L.), thick; labris, plural of labrum (L.), lip, referring to its “soft and fleshy” upper lip
Tachysurus dumerili (Bleeker 1864) in honor of Bleeker’s friend August Duméril (1812–1870), French herpetologist and ichthyologist, Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle (Paris), who kindly allowed Bleeker to describe it
Tachysurus emarginatus (Regan 1913) Latin for deprived of its edge (i.e., having a notched tip), referring to emarginate caudal fin [treated as a junior synonym of T. pratti by some workers]
Tachysurus eupogon (Boulenger 1892) eū́– (Gr. εὖ), well or very; pṓgōn (Gr. πώγων), beard, presumably referring to nasal barbels (“twice and a half as long as eye”), maxillary barbels (“a little longer than the head”), and/or outer mandibular barbels (“three fourths the length of the head, inner one half”)
Tachysurus fui (Miao 1934) in honor of Tung-sheng Fu, Honan Museum (no other information available)
Tachysurus gracilis (Li, Chen & Chan 2005) Latin for thin or slender, referring to its thin, elongate body
Tachysurus herzensteini (Berg 1907) in honor of Russian ichthyologist Solomon Markovich Herzenstein (1854–1894), who reported this species as a distinct form of Macrones (=Pelteobagrus) ussuriensis in 1887
Tachysurus hoi (Pellegrin & Fang 1940) in honor of Chinese ichthyologist and geneticist Ho Ting Chieh, National University of Wu Han (now Wuhan University), who collected holotype and presented it, along with other Chinese fishes, to the Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle (Paris)
Tachysurus intermedius (Nichols & Pope 1927) Latin for intermediate, described as intermediate between T. fulvidraco and “one or more related ones on the mainland [of China] with short, slender barbels”
Tachysurus kaifenensis (Tchang 1934) –ensis, Latin suffix denoting place: Kaifeng, Henan, China, type locality
Tachysurus koreanus (Uchida 1990) –anus (L.), belonging to: Korea, where it is endemic
Tachysurus kyphus (Mai 1978) etymology not explained, presumably a latinization of Ky Phu stream, Dai Tu District, Thai Nguyen Province, northern Vietnam, type locality
Tachysurus lani Cheng, Shao, López & Zhang 2021 in honor of Jia-Hu Lan, a parataxonomist who collected type specimens, for his contributions to the understanding of freshwater fishes of Guangxi Province, China, based on his field surveys
Tachysurus latifrontalis Shao & Zhang 2022 latus (L.), broad or wide; frontis (L.), brow or forehead, referring to its relatively wide interorbital space
Tachysurus longibarbus (Cui 1990) longus (L.), long; barbis (scientific Neo-Latin), barbel, referring to longer barbels compared to T. crassilabris and T. tenuifurcatus
Tachysurus longispinalis (Nguyen 2005) longus (L.), long; spinalis (L.), of or belonging to the spine (but here meaning spiny), referring to long and sharp dorsal-fin spine, about 2/3 of head length [species inquirenda, provisionally included here]
Tachysurus medianalis (Regan 1904) media (L.), moderate or middle; analis (L.), anal, referring to its 17–18 anal-fin rays, relevance not evident, perhaps within the middle range compared with related species
Tachysurus microcrassirostris (Xiao 2010) micro-, from mikrós (Gr. μικρός), small; crassirostris, presumably referring to its shorter body (93–124 mm vs. 170–235 mm) compared with the similar T. crassilabris)
Tachysurus microps (Rendahl 1933) micro-, from mikrós (Gr. μικρός), small; ṓps (Gr. ὦψ), eye, referring to smaller eyes compared with T. crassilabris
Tachysurus nitidus (Sauvage & Dabry de Thiersant 1874) Latin for shining, neat or elegant, allusion not explained, perhaps referring to its “reddish body, wine-colored towards the back” (translation)
Tachysurus nubilosus (Ng & Freyhof 2007) Latin for cloudy, referring to its color pattern (cream patches on a brown body)
Tachysurus nudiceps (Sauvage 1883) nudus (L.), bare or naked (i.e., ony or skinless); -ceps (Neo-Latin), headed, allusion not explained, possibly referring to the top of its head, which is granulated, with a very thin covering of skin
Tachysurus omeihensis (Nichols 1941) –ensis, Latin suffix denoting place: Omeihsien, Sichuan Province, China, type locality
Tachysurus ondon (Shaw 1930) etymology not explained; name does not appear to be a Greek or Latin word, does correspond with the Chinese vernacular (“angtang”), and does not match any area in China that we can find
Tachysurus pratti (Günther 1892) in honor of British naturalist and explorer Antwerp Edgar Pratt (1852–1924), who collected holotype
Tachysurus sinensis Lacepède 1803 –ensis, Latin suffix denoting place: Sinica (China), a Chinese catfish described from a Chinese painting
Tachysurus sinyanensis (Fu 1935) –ensis, Latin suffix denoting place: Sinyang (Xinyang), southern Honan (Henan) Province, China, type locality
Tachysurus spilotus Ng 2009 from spilōtós (Gr. σπιλωτός), marked or stained, referring to spots on bases of caudal-fin lobes
Tachysurus taiwanensis (Oshima 1919) –ensis, Latin suffix denoting place: Taiwan, where it is endemic
Tachysurus taeniatus (Günther 1873) Latin for banded, referring to broad blackish along the sides
Tachysurus tenuifurcatus (Nichols 1931) tenuis (L.), thin or slender, referring to similar elongate body shape compared to P. tenuis; furcatus (L.), forked, referring to “deeply forked” caudal fin
Tachysurus tenuis (Günther 1873) Latin for thin or slender, referring to “much elongate” body, “very short and thin” barbels, and/or “thin skin” covering smooth head
Tachysurus tokiensis (Döderlein 1887) –ensis, Latin suffix denoting place: Tokyo, Japan, type locality
Tachysurus tonkinensis (Nguyen 2005) –ensis, Latin suffix denoting place: Tonkin (exonym for northern Vietnam), said to occur in the northern plains of Vietnam [species inquirenda, provisionally included here]
Tachysurus trilineatus (Zheng 1979) tri– (L.), three; lineatus (L.), lined, referring to three yellowish lines on each side of body
Tachysurus ussuriensis (Dybowski 1872) –ensis, Latin suffix denoting place: Ussuri River, Russia, one of two Amur basin rivers where it was first collected
Tachysurus vachellii (Richardson 1846) in honor of Rev. George Harvey Vachell (1799–1839), chaplain to the British East India Company’s factory at Macau, China, and collector of botanical specimens for Kew Gardens, who “presented” holotype
Tachysurus virgatus (Oshima 1926) Latin for made of twigs (i.e., branched), Latin for made of twigs (i.e., branched), etymology not explained, possibly referring to bluish black band along lateral line, “forked at the caudal base, [with] each branch reaching the tip [of the] caudal lobe”
Tachysurus yeni (Nguyen & Nguyen 2005) in honor of Vietnamese ichthyologist Mai Đinh Yên (1933–2020), who reported this catfish as a distinct population of Mystus gulio in 1978 [species inquirenda, provisionally included here]
Tachysurus zhangfei Shao, Cheng & Zhang 2021 UNAVAILABLE; ELECTRONIC PUBLICATION WITHOUT ZOOBANK REGISTRATION named for Zhang Fei, a character in Romance of the Three Kingdoms (14th century, attributed to Luo Guanzhong), one of the Four Great Classical Novels of Chinese literature, referring to this fish’s blackish or brown body, reminiscent of Zhang Fei’s black face as depicted in Chinese opera [presumably a noun in apposition, without the patronymic “i”]