Order CYPRINODONTIFORMES: Families APLOCHEILIDAE and NOTHOBRANCHIIDAE

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v. 13.0 – 29 May 2024  view/download PDF

Family APLOCHEILIDAE Asian and Malagasy Rivulines
2 genera · 16 species

Aplocheilus McClelland 1838    [h]aplo-, simple or single; cheilus, lip, allusion not explained, possibly referring to upper jaw, instead of both jaws, bordered by premaxilla; Wildekamp (1995) says that name refers to “non-protractible upper lip” but multiple accounts from other authors report that upper jaw is protrusible

Aplocheilus andamanicus (Köhler 1906)    icus, belonging to: Andaman Islands, India, where it is endemic

Aplocheilus armatus (van Hasselt 1823)    armed with a weapon, presumably referring to teeth (only feature mentioned), which are said to “span the lower jaw externally and the entire upper jaw” (translation)

Aplocheilus blockii Arnold 1911    in honor of Captain Block (no other information available), who collected and imported this species to Germany as an aquarium fish

Aplocheilus dayi Steindachner 1892    in honor of Francis Day (1829-1889), Inspector-General of Fisheries in India, who reported this species as A. panchax in 1877

Aplocheilus kirchmayeri Berkenkamp & Etzel 1986    in honor of Josef Kirchmayer, German aquarist who collected, imported and was the first to breed this species

Aplocheilus lineatus (Valenciennes 1846)    lined, presumably referring to 8-15 dark crossbars when alarmed, originally described as “two black lines that descend from middle of body to belly, forming half-bands on posterior part of trunk” (translation)

Aplocheilus panchax (Hamilton 1822)    from Pangchak, local Bengali name for this species in India

Aplocheilus parvus (Sundara Raj 1916)    small, described at 42 mm (adult males) and 28 mm (adult females)

Aplocheilus werneri Meinken 1966    in honor of Andreas Werner, an “influential” (translation) fish importer in Munich, who imported this fish for the first time in 1964 (Werner’s company is now called Transfish)

Pachypanchax Myers 1933    pachys, thick, referring to body shape similar to that of Panchax (=Aplocheilus), “but more chubby”

Pachypanchax arnoulti Loiselle 2006    in honor of ichthyologist-herpetologist Jacques Arnoult (1914-1995), for many contributions to Malagasy ichthyology, and who introduced this and other fishes from Madagascar to science and to the aquarium hobby in the 1950s

Pachypanchax omalonotus (Duméril 1861)    [h]omalos, level or even (i.e., flat); notus, back, referring to back from tip of muzzle to origin of dorsal fin forming a “large flat surface” (translation)

Pachypanchax patriciae Loiselle 2006    in honor of Patricia Yazgi (1946-2006), who ran Friends of Fishes, a charitable organization, for her support of ongoing efforts to document and conserve the Malagasy freshwater ichthyofauna

Pachypanchax playfairii (Günther 1866)    in honor of Lieut.-Col. Robert Lambert Playfair (1828-1899), British Consul to the Sultanate of Oman in Zanzibar (Tanzania), who presented type (from the Seychelles) to the British Museum (Natural History)

Pachypanchax sakaramyi (Holly 1928)    of the Sakaramy River, at village of same name, northern Madagascar, type locality

Pachypanchax sparksorum Loiselle 2006    orum, commemorative suffix, plural: in honor of ichthyologist John S. Sparks (b. 1963), American Museum of Natural History, and his wife Karen Riseng Sparks, who first documented the presence of a distinctive Pachypanchax in the Ankofia drainage and collected much of the type series

Pachypanchax varatraza Loiselle 2006    Malagasy word for east wind, referring to unanticipated presence of a Pachypanchax species in rivers draining the eastern slope of the Tsaratanana Massi                   


Family NOTHOBRANCHIIDAE African Rivulines
36 genera/subgenera · 341 species/subspecies

Subfamily NOTHOBRANCHIINAE

Aphyosemion Myers 1924    aphya, a small fish; semeion, banner, referring to small size of A. castaneum (34 mm in length to base of caudal) and lyre-shaped caudal fins, with upper and lower lobes forming streamers or pennants

Subgenus Aphyosemion

Aphyosemion castaneum Myers 1924    chestnut, referring to brown color in alcohol

Aphyosemion chauchei Huber & Scheel 1981    in honor of French aquarist and fish photographer Maurice Chauche (d. 2012), for his “complete devotion” to the study of aquarium fishes

Aphyosemion christyi (Boulenger 1915)    in honor of Cuthbert Christy (1863-1932), physician (specializing in sleeping sickness), zoologist, explorer, and Director of the Congo Museum (Tervuren, Belgium), who collected type (he died after being gored by a buffalo he had shot in the Congo)

Aphyosemion cognatum Meinken 1951    related, presumed (erroneously) to be related to A. calliurum and A. striatum

Aphyosemion congicum (Ahl 1924)    icum, belonging to: lower Congo River system of Central Africa, where it is endemic

Aphyosemion decorsei (Pellegrin 1904)    in honor of French army physician and naturalist Gaston-Jules Decorse (1873-1907), who helped collect type and other fishes from the Ubangi River (Central African Republic) with “tireless zeal” (translation)

Aphyosemion elegans (Boulenger 1899)    fine, select or elegant, allusion not explained, probably referring to male coloration, with scales edged in carmine-red and vertical fins with carmine dots and margined with carmine or dark purple

Aphyosemion fellmanni van der Zee & Sonnenberg 2018    in honor of French aquarist Emmanuel Fellmann, who collected type; he made four expeditions to the Republic of the Congo to study killifishes and to get a better insight into the distribution of Aphyosemion and Epiplatys species in the southern part of the country

Aphyosemion ferranti (Boulenger 1910)    in honor of naturalist Viktor Ferrant (1856-1942), founder, Société des Naturalistes Luxembourgeois, who submitted a “few small fishes” (translation) collected by Edouard Luja (see A. lujae), including type of this one, to Boulenger for examination

Aphyosemion lamberti Radda & Huber 1977    in honor of Belgian ichthyologist Jacques G. Lambert (1923-2013), for his work on the systematics and distribution of killifishes and his research in Gabon (where this species is endemic), and the French killifish enthusiast André Lambert, who has bred this species in aquaria [preferably spelled lambertorum since name honors more than one person, but ICZN 32.5.1 forbids such a correction]

Aphyosemion lefiniense Woeltjes 1984    ensis, suffix denoting place: Lefini River system of the Congo River, Republic of the Congo, type locality

Aphyosemion lujae (Boulenger 1911)    in honor of botanist and entomologist Edouard Luja (1875-1953), resident of Kasai, Zaire (type locality), who “obtained” type [although named after a man, some classically trained zoologists latinized the names of individuals whose names ended with the letter “a” by adding an “e” to the spelling]                              

Aphyosemion musafirii van der Zee & Sonnenberg 2011    in honor of Jean Musafiri (Ubundu, Democratic Republic of Congo), coordinator for the national tuberculosis and leprosy control program in the Province Orientale Occidentale, the forest area around Kisangani, near where this species occurs; the name Musafiri means “traveler” in Swahili and, indeed, “he travels around the area under very difficult circumstances, covering enormous distances by jeep, motorised canoe or small motorcycle,” helping the people of his province “in spite of the very difficult living conditions and the atrocities of the war,” while making it possible that the type of this species [and that of Fenerbahce devosi] could be collected by A. Van Deun (Institute of Tropical Medicine, Antwerp) during an external evaluation visit of the tuberculosis/leprosy program

Aphyosemion plagitaenium Huber 2004    plagios, oblique; taenia, band, referring to oblique (instead of vertical) red lineated pattern on lower sides of males, forming a “chevron” pattern with upper sides

Aphyosemion polli Radda & Pürzl 1987    in honor of ichthyologist Max Poll (1908-1991), who reported this species as A. schoutedeni in 1952

Aphyosemion pseudoelegans Sonnenberg & van der Zee 2012    pseudo-, false, i.e., although this species may resemble, and was previously misidentified as, A. elegans, such an appearance is false

Aphyosemion rectogoense Radda & Huber 1977    ensis, suffix denoting place, etymology not explained: according to Huber (2005), rectus, proper, right or corrected; ogoense, referring to Ogooué (or Ogowe) River, Gabon, type locality, where a similar species with a convergent pattern (A. ogoense) is supposed to occur; according to Wildekamp (1993), Radda initially regarded A. rectogoense as the original A. ogoense

Aphyosemion schioetzi Huber & Scheel 1981    in honor of Danish herpetologist and aquarist Arne Schiøtz (b. 1932), Director, Danish Aquarium (1964-1996); he also collected type of Rhexipanchax schiotzi (Procatopodidae), described by junior author in 1968 [although it was not necessary for the authors to latinize “ø” as “oe,” that spelling stands; however, the spelling of R. schiotzi, named for the same person, does not contain the “e” (see Cyprinodontiformes Part 4 for an explanation)]

Aphyosemion schoutedeni (Boulenger 1920)    in honor of zoologist Henri Schouteden (1881-1972), who collected many new species in the Belgian Congo (but not this one)

Aphyosemion teugelsi van der Zee & Sonnenberg 2010    in honor of the late Guy Teugels (1954-2003), curator of fishes at the Musée Royale de l’Afrique Centrale, “renowned worldwide for his contribution of the knowledge of African freshwater fishes, especially for his expertise in clariid catfishes, his favorite group. He was not only characterized by an impressive scientific productivity but also by his affection for the African continent and its people. Guy was an enthusiastic coach for the first author at the Zoology department of the museum for many years.”

Subgenus Caeruleamsemion Valdesalici & Malumbres 2023    caeruleam, light blue, referring to coloration on flank of A. coeleste; semion, short for Aphyosemion [proposed in 2022 but not made available until 2023]

Aphyosemion aureum Radda 1980    gold, referring to distinctive golden body color

Aphyosemion citrineipinnis Huber & Radda 1977    citrina, lemon or orange; pinnis, fin, referring to lemon-yellow fins of males

Aphyosemion coeleste Huber & Radda 1977    sky-blue, referring to brilliant sky-blue coloration of sides (posterior half) of males

Aphyosemion cryptum van der Zee, Walsh, Boukaka Mikembi, Jonker, Alexandre & Sonnenberg 2018    hidden, referring to how this species was first thought to represent a color variation of A. coeleste and not a species of its own

Aphyosemion hanneloreae Radda & Pürzl 1985    in honor of Hannelore, wife of the junior author

Aphyosemion mandoroense van der Zee, Walsh, Boukaka Mikembi, Jonker, Alexandre & Sonnenberg 2018    ensis, suffix denoting place: Mandoro River, a tributary of the Louessé River, Republic of the Congo, type locality

Aphyosemion ocellatum Huber & Radda 1977    eyed (i.e., with an eye spot), referring to dark spot behind pectoral fin on both sexes

Aphyosemion passaroi Huber 1994    in honor of Guido Passaro (Ludwigsburg, Germany), who collected type with Wolfgang Eberl (named at the request of Eberl)

Aphyosemion wuendschi Radda & Pürzl 1985    in honor of Prof. Leopold Wündsch, Institute for General and Comparative Physiology, University of Vienna

Subgenus Chromaphyosemion Radda 1971    Aphyosemion subgenus named for color (chroma), allusion not explained, probably referring to brightly colored males of Fundulopanchax multicolor (=A. bitaeniatum), with body and fins that change colors when displaying

Aphyosemion alpha Huber 1998    first letter of Greek alphabet, referring to red α-shaped dots on sides of males

Aphyosemion aurantiacum Chirio, Legros & Agnèse 2018    orange-colored, referring to orange head, ventral region and anal fin of living males

Aphyosemion barakoniense Chirio, Legros & Agnèse 2018    ensis, suffix denoting place: lower Barakonié River, Gabon, type locality

Aphyosemion bitaeniatum (Ahl 1924)    bi-, two; taeniatum, striped, referring to color pattern of type specimen in alcohol, featuring two dark brown longitudinal bands across body, an upper one around the lips and through eye to upper edge of caudal peduncle, and a lower one over chin and under pectoral fins to lower margin of caudal peduncle (living specimens from different populations are variable in their color and color pattern)

Aphyosemion bivittatum (Lönnberg 1895)    bi-, two; vittatum, banded, referring to two rather broad dark-brown bands running entire length of body

Aphyosemion ecucuense (Sonnenberg 2008)    ensis, suffix denoting place: Río Ecucu basin, Equatorial Guinea, where it appears to be endemic

Aphyosemion erythron (Sonnenberg 2008)    from erythros, red, referring to nearly regular rows of red dots on side and red-dotted fins, giving an overall reddish impression

Aphyosemion flammulatum Chirio, Legros & Agnèse 2018    flaming or burning, referring to bright-orange tip of dorsal fin of living males

Aphyosemion flavocyaneum Chirio, Legros & Agnèse 2018    flavus, yellow; cyaneum, blue, referring to yellow-orange head and sides and blue unpaired fins (with orange accents) of living males

Aphyosemion kouamense Legros 1999    ensis, suffix denoting place: Kouama River, into which water at type locality (edge of Cristal Mountains, northwest Gabon) flows

Aphyosemion koungueense (Sonnenberg 2007)    ensis, suffix denoting place: Koungué, a small river in the forest near the village of Koungué Ndonga, Cameroon, type locality; name also acknowledges the “friendly welcome and invaluable help of the Koungué villagers”

Aphyosemion loennbergii (Boulenger 1903)    in honor of Swedish zoologist Einar Lönnberg (1865-1942), “author of several contributions to the fish-fauna of Cameroon,” where this species is endemic

Aphyosemion lugens Amiet 1991    mournful, referring to the “dark, mournful” (translation) coloration of males

Aphyosemion malumbresi Legros & Zentz 2006    in honor of killifish hobbyist Francisco J. Malumbres (Madrid, Spain), co-discoverer of this species and initiator of several ichthyological expeditions in Equatorial Guinea

Aphyosemion melanogaster (Legros, Zentz & Agnèse 2005)    melano-, black; gaster, belly, referring to entirely black ventral region of males

Aphyosemion melinoeides (Sonnenberg 2007)    orange-colored, referring to conspicuous orange color on throat, belly and fins

Aphyosemion omega (Sonnenberg 2007)    last letter of Greek alphabet, named with regard to A. alpha in the sense of alpha (the beginning) and omega (the end), referring to relative (phylogenetic) position of both species within Chromaphyosemion, with C. alpha as the basal species and C. omega as a more derived species, the result of a recent radiation

Aphyosemion pamaense Agnèse, Legros, Cazaux & Estivals 2013    ensis, suffix denoting place: Pama River, near the village of Pama, Cameroon, type locality

Aphyosemion poliaki Amiet 1991    in honor of French killifish hobbyist Daniel Poliak, for contributions to the knowledge of the subgenus Chromaphyosemion, both in the field and in the aquarium

Aphyosemion punctulatum (Legros, Zentz & Agnèse 2005)    diminutive of punctum, spot, i.e., dotted, referring to small red spots on fins of males

Aphyosemion pusillum Chirio, Legros & Agnèse 2018    very small, up to 28.5 mm SL (33.8 mm TL)

Aphyosemion riggenbachi (Ahl 1924)    in honor of Swiss zoologist (and later American art dealer) Fritz Wilhelm Riggenbach (1864-1944), who collected type                                    

Aphyosemion rubrogaster Chirio, Legros & Agnèse 2018    rubro-, red; gaster, belly, referring to orange ventral region and “intense orange” coloration between end of anal fin and caudal peduncle of living males

Aphyosemion splendopleure (Brüning 1929)    splendidus, shining; pleura, side, referring to shimmering or luminescent green sides of males

Aphyosemion volcanum Radda & Wildekamp 1977    volcanic, referring to type locality (southwest of Kumbas, western Cameroon), near the active volcano Mount Cameroon

Subgenus Diapteron Huber & Seegers 1977    dia-, away from (i.e., shifted); pteron, fin, referring to forward position of dorsal fin

Aphyosemion abacinum Huber 1976    mosaic, referring to distinct color pattern of crossbars on males

Aphyosemion cyanostictum Lambert & Géry 1968    cyano-, blue; stictum, spotted, referring to light-blue (sometimes white) spot on nearly every scale of males

Aphyosemion fulgens Radda 1975    bright, probably referring to coloration of males, which feature combinations of deep blue, deep orange and red 

Aphyosemion georgiae Lambert & Géry 1968    in honor of Géry’s wife, Georgie, or Georgette, “whose active participation in the collection of killifishes greatly contributed to the wealth of the collections studied” (translation)

Aphyosemion seegersi Huber 1980    in honor of German ichthyologist, aquarist and photographer Lothar Seegers (1947-2018), “as a sign of my friendship and my admiration for his remarkable research” (translation) into the egg-surface structures of killifishes

Subgenus Iconisemion Huber 2013    icon, figure or picture, referring to “diversified and rich” color patterns of body and fins of males; semion, short for Aphyosemion

Aphyosemion bitteri Valdesalici & Eberl 2016    in honor of Friedrich Bitter, German killifish hobbyist and and editor-in-chief of Aquaristik, who helped collect first known specimens in 2001, for his contribution to the knowledge of African killifishes

Aphyosemion buytaerti Radda & Huber 1978    in honor of Belgian aquarist John Buytaert (1944-2012), a “very active” (translation) member of the Belgian Killifish Association particularly interested in Aphyosemion; he collected type with Walter Wachters (see A. wachtersi)

Aphyosemion caudofasciatum Huber & Radda 1979    caudo-, tail; fasciatum, striped, referring to wide, vertical, dark-red bar on caudal fin of males

Aphyosemion cyanoflavum van der Zee, Walsh, Boukaka Mikembi, Jonker, Alexandre & Sonnenberg 2018    cyano-, blue; flavum, yellow, referring to bicolored flanks in live males

Aphyosemion escherichi (Ahl 1924)    in honor of Escherich (forename not given), who collected type, probably entomologist Karl L. Escherich (1871-1951)

Aphyosemion exigoideum Radda & Huber 1977    oideus, like, referring to similarity in male color pattern with that of A. exiguum (per Huber, 2013)

Aphyosemion gabunense gabunense Radda 1975    ensis, suffix denoting place: Gabon, where it is endemic

Aphyosemion gabunense boehmi Radda & Huber 1977    in honor of Austrian aquarist Otto Böhm, an “internationally known killifish lover (translation)

Aphyosemion gabunense marginatum Rada & Huber 1977    bordered, referring to characteristic symmetrical marginal and submarginal bands on unpaired fins of males (Jean H. Huber, pers. comm.)

Aphyosemion grelli Valdesalici & Eberl 2013    in honor of the late Wolfgang Grell, member of the DKG (Deutsche Killifisch Gemeinschaft); a “talented killifish collector, breeder, and photographer who only one year before his death in May 2001, directed the second author’s attention to the probable existence of an unknown species [this one] in the area east of Sindara” in southern Gabon

Aphyosemion hera Huber 1998    named for the Greek goddess Hera, referring to the beauty of the female, with bright apple-yellow to gold-yellow coloration on belly and strong red pigments on sides and fins, “probably the most beautiful [female] in Aphyosemion, if not in Cyprinodonts, but this is subjective”

Aphyosemion hofmanni Radda 1980    in honor of Austrian aquarist Otto Hoffman, who discovered this species and helped collect type

Aphyosemion jeanhuberi Valdesalici & Eberl 2015    in honor of French ichthyologist and pharmaceutical executive Jean H. Huber (b. 1952), who discovered this species, and for his “long-term as well as inestimable contribution” to the knowledge of oviparous Cyprinodontiformes

Aphyosemion joergenscheeli Huber & Radda 1977    in honor of Danish count, colonel, explorer and ichthyologist (specializing in African rivulines) Jørgen J. Scheel (1916-1989), the authors’ “teacher and friend” (translation)

Aphyosemion louessense (Pellegrin 1931)    ensis, Louessé River, Republic of Congo, type locality (also occurs in Gabon)

Aphyosemion mengilai Valdesalici & Eberl 2014    in honor of François Mengila (Libreville, Gabon), for his help as driver and guide for the junior author’s collecting trips in Gabon   

Aphyosemion microphtalmum Lambert & Géry 1968    micro-, small; ophthalmum [misspelled ophtalmum], eye, proposed as a subspecies of A. striatum with eye diameter shorter, rather than longer, than length of snout

Aphyosemion ogoense (Pellegrin 1930)    ensis, suffix denoting place: upper Ogooué (or Ogowe) River, Gabon, type locality (also occurs in Republic of Congo)                   

Aphyosemion ottogartneri Radda 1980    in honor of Austrian aquarist and policeman Otto Gartner (1925-2018), Radda’s “faithful companion” (translation) on several collecting trips to West Africa

Aphyosemion primigenium Radda & Huber 1977    first born, referring to its hypothesized ancestral (or primitive) position to that of the A. striatum superspecies (Jean H. Huber, pers. comm.)

Aphyosemion pyrophore Huber & Radda 1979    pyros, fire; phoros, bearer, referring to flame-like pattern of irregular vertical bars on posterior sides of males                         

Aphyosemion schluppi Radda & Huber 1978    in honor of Father Gerard Schlupp, missionary at the Zanaga Mission Post (Zaire), who provided hospitality to Belgian aquarists John Buytaert and Walter Wachters, who collected type

Aphyosemion striatum (Boulenger 1911)    striped or streaked, referring to any or all of the following: olive streaks on side; carmine median streak on dorsal and anal fins; fins grayish, carmine and white streak on caudal fin

Aphyosemion thysi Radda & Huber 1978    in honor of ichthyologist Dirk Thys van den Audenaerde (b. 1934), Director at the Musée Royal de l’Afrique Centrale (Tervuren, Belgium)

Aphyosemion wachtersi wachtersi Radda & Huber 1978    in honor of “dear friend” (translation) Walter Wachters, Belgian aquarist who collected type with John Buytaert (see A. buytaerti); in addition to his “zealous” (translation) collecting efforts in West Africa, he is dedicated to the care and breeding of all Aphyosemion species and has already bred this one

Aphyosemion wachtersi mikeae Radda 1980    in honor of Mike Wachters, wife of Belgian aquarist Walter Wachters, for supporting her husband’s study of the genus

Aphyosemion zygaima Huber 1981    zygon, belt; haima, of blood, referring to red margin on caudal fin of males, which joins the “flame pattern” of the inner part of that fin (Jean H. Huber, pers. comm.)

Subgenus Kathetys Huber 1977    kathetos, perpendicular; according to Huber (2013), name means “with vertical bars,” referring to striped body pattern on body and fins of males

Aphyosemion bamilekorum Radda 1971    orum, commemorative suffix, plural: named for the Bamileke tribe, who live in the area (highlands of Cameroon) where this killifish occur

Aphyosemion bualanum (Ahl 1924)    anum, belonging to: Bouala, Cameroon, type locality (also occurs in Central African Republic)

Aphyosemion dargei Amiet 1987    in honor of French entomologist Philippe Darge (b. 1933), “whose enthusiasm as a naturalist and efficacious perseverance are at the heart of the publication” of the book in which the description appeared

Aphyosemion elberti elberti (Ahl 1924)    in honor of Elbert (forename not given), who collected type, possibly Johannes Elbert (1878-1915), Danish geologist, geographer and naturalist who explored Cameroon in 1914 [possibly a junior synonym of A. bualanum]

Aphyosemion elberti kekemense Radda & Scheel 1975    ensis, suffix denoting place: Kekem District, Cameroon, type locality

Aphyosemion exiguum (Boulenger 1911)    small or scanty, at 32 mm TL tied with Haplochilus brucii (=Fundulopanchax gardneri) as the smallest killifish Boulenger described in his paper

Subgenus Mesoaphyosemion Radda 1977    meso-, middle, referring to presumed systematic position of this subgenus within Aphyopsemion [treated as a full genus by some workers]

Aphyosemion amoenum Radda & Pürzl 1976    lovely or beautiful, allusion not explained, probably referring to markings and coloration of males

Aphyosemion cameronense (Boulenger 1903)    ensis, suffix denoting place: Cameroon, type locality (also occurs in Gabon and possibly Equatorial Guinea and Republic of the Congo)

Aphyosemion etsamense Sonnenberg & Blum 2005    ensis, suffix denoting place: the village of Etsam I, Gabon, type locality

Aphyosemion haasi Radda & Pürzl 1976    in honor of German aquarist Karl-Heinz Haas, who, although primarily interested in cichlids, “energetically supported” (translation) the authors’ killifish collecting trips in Cameroon

Aphyosemion halleri Radda & Pürzl 1976    in honor of German aquarist Ernst Haller, who collected type

Aphyosemion labarrei Poll 1951    in honor of Clement Labarre (no other information available), who collected type

Aphyosemion lorai Valdesalici & Malumbres 2023    in memory of the late Francisco Garcia Lora, “one of the most enthusiastic and well known” Spanish killifish breeder hobbyists, who travelled to Equatorial Guinea many times, contributing to the discovery of numerous new killifish species [proposed in 2022 but not made available until 2023]

Aphyosemion losantosi (Malumbres, Sonnenberg & van der Zee 2022)    in honor of Félix Losantos (1967–2020), a “very good friend” and co-traveler of the senior author on collection trips to Equatorial Guinea; he was a “tireless, passionate and helpful person”

Aphyosemion maculatum Radda & Pürzl 1977    spotted, referring to dark, purplish, usually transverse spots on sides of males

Aphyosemion mimbon Huber 1977    local name among the Fang people of northern Gabon (type locality) for Aphyosemion species

Aphyosemion montealenense (Malumbres, Sonnenberg & van der Zee 2022)    –ensis, suffix denoting place: Monte Alén, the highest mountain in Equatorial Guinea (1250 m); this species occurs at the southeastern foot of this mountain at an altitude of ca. 690 m

Aphyosemion obscurum (Ahl 1924)    dark, referring to monochrome blackish color (body and fins) in alcohol

Aphyosemion punctatum Radda & Pürzl 1977    dotted or spotted, referring to usually interrupted rows of red dots on sides of males

Aphyosemion raddai Scheel 1975    in honor of zoologist-virologist Alfred C. Radda (1936-2022), University of Vienna, who was aware that this species, then considered a population of A. cameronense, was distinct

Aphyosemion wildekampi Berkenkamp 1973    in honor of Dutch aquarist and amateur ichthyologist Rudolf H. Wildekamp (1945-2019), who bred this species and sent specimens to Berkenkamp

Subgenus Scheelsemion Huber 2013    Scheel, in honor of Jørgen J. Scheel (1916-1989), Colonel in Danish Army, amateur ichthyologist and geneticist, and “pioneering modern researcher” of Old World cyprinodontiforms, notably Aphyosemion; semion, short for Aphyosemion

Aphyosemion ahli Myers 1933    in honor of ichthyologist-herpetologist Ernst Ahl (1898-1945), who was “perfectly correct” in referring Fundulus neumanni, F. guentheri and related forms (Myers’ Adiniops) to Nothobranchius

Aphyosemion australe (Rachow 1921)    southern, described as the southernmost variety of A. calliurum

Aphyosemion bochtleri Radda 1975    in honor of Franz Bochtler, member of the DKG (Deutsche Killifisch Gemeinschaft), who provided “results and material” from his collecting trips in Gabon, including type of this species

Aphyosemion calliurum (Boulenger 1911)    calli-, beautiful; oura, tailed, presumably referring to tails of males, with prolonged middle rays, spotted with carmine, and lower lobe edged with carmine and white

Aphyosemion campomaanense Agnèse, Brummett, Caminade, Catalan & Kornobis 2009    ensis, suffix denoting place: Campo-Ma’an National Park, Cameroon, type locality

Aphyosemion celiae celiae Scheel 1971    in honor of Celia Epie of Mambanda, West Cameroon, eldest daughter of John Epie, manager of the Meanja Rubber Estate, who hosted Scheel and accompanied him during his collecting trips; type was collected in a stream near Epie’s home

Aphyosemion celiae winifredae Radda & Scheel 1975    in honor of Winifred Epie of Mambanda, West Cameroon, daughter of John Epie, manager of the Meanja Rubber Estate, who again hosted Scheel in 1973

Aphyosemion edeanum Amiet 1987    anum, adjectival suffix: type series collected 35 km east of Edea, Sanaga basin, Cameroon

Aphyosemion franzwerneri Scheel 1971    in honor of the late Franz Werner (Detroit, Michigan, USA), “modern amateur student of rivulins” and “eminent American killifish fancier”

Aphyosemion heinemanni Berkenkamp 1983    in honor of German aquarist Hendrik Heinemann, who helped collect type

Aphyosemion herzogi Radda 1975    in honor of Wolfgang Herzog, member of the DKG (Deutsche Killifisch Gemeinschaft), who “kindly provided the results of his successful fish collections in Gabon” (he collected paratypes with Franz Bochtler; see A. bochtleri)

Aphyosemion lividum Legros & Zentz 2007    blueish, referring to predominant color of body and fins of males

Aphyosemion mitemelense Malumbres, Sonnenberg & van der Zee 2022    –ensis, suffix denoting place: Mitemele River basin, Equatorial Guinea, type locality

Aphyosemion pascheni pascheni (Ahl 1928)    in honor of Paschen (forename not given), who collected type, possibly H. Paschen, a German settler and trader in Yaounde, Cameroon, who achieved some notoriety for shooting a large gorilla in 1900, then the largest gorilla known, now on display at the Natural History Museum at Tring (United Kingdom)

Aphyosemion pascheni festivum Amiet 1987    showing a feast (with bright colors), allusion not explained, probably referring to bright colors of both sexes                          

Aphyosemion tirbaki Huber 1999    in honor of Peter J. Tirbak (1932-2019), Palo Alto, California, USA, “renowned” killifish hobbyist, who helped collect type and provided specimens for study    

Episemion Radda & Pürzl 1987    combination of Epiplatys and Aphyosemion, having characteristics of both genera

Episemion callipteron Radda & Pürzl 1987    calli-, beautiful; pterus, fin, presumably referring to fins of males, described as having numerous yellow-gold specks on dorsal and upper caudal fin and bluish-silver dots on anal and most of caudal fin, with vivid orange pectoral fins and deep yellow ventral fins

Episemion krystallinoron Sonnenberg, Blum & Misof 2006    krystallin, crystal; oron, mountains, referring to Monts de Cristal (Crystal Mountains), Gabon, type locality (also occurs in Equatorial Guinea)

Fenerbahce Özdikmen, Polat, Yilmaz & Yazicioglu 2006    etymology not explained; since authors are Turkish, perhaps derived from Turkish word fenerbahçe (fener, lantern; bahçe, garden, i.e., a garden lantern), deriving from an ancient lighthouse at Fenerbahçe Cape, perhaps referring to brilliant-white heart-shaped blotch on top of head of both sexes (per Huber, 2008); some online resources suggest genus is named for Fenerbahçe SK, a major multi-sport club based in Istanbul, or a Turkish football team, Fenerbahçe Istanbul, but these honorariums seem doubtful

Fenerbahce devosi Sonnenberg, Woeltjes & van der Zee 2011    in honor of Luc De Vos (1957-2003), Chief Ichthyologist at the National Museums of Kenya, “who died far too young” (from kidney failure); he made several “important” fish collections in the Congo Basin, including populations of this species

Fenerbahce formosus (Huber 1979)    beautiful, allusion not explained but referring to color and body shape (per Huber, 2011)

Foerschichthys Scheel & Romand 1981    in honor of German physician and aquarist Walter Foersch (1932-1993), for his “research in ichthyology and in particular in the study of cyprinodont species”; ichthys, fish

Foerschichthys flavipinnis (Meinken 1932)    flavus, yellow; pinnis, fin, referring to yellow-to-orange dorsal and anal fins of males, pale yellow in females

Fundulopanchax Myers 1924    combination of Fundulus (now in Fundulidae of North America but included African species at the time) and Panchax (=Aplocheilus), whose characters this genus “to some extent combines”

Subgenus Fundulopanchax

Fundulopanchax fallax (Ahl 1935)    false or deceitful, probably referring to resemblance to and confusion with F. gularis and/or F. walkeri spurrelli               

Fundulopanchax kamdemi Akum, Sonnenberg, van der Zee & Wildekamp 2007    in honor of André Kamdem Toham, Cameroonese ichthyologist and landscape ecologist for the World Wildlife Fund’s Central African Rainforest Project (CARPE), who collected some of the paratypes

Fundulopanchax powelli van der Zee & Wildekamp 1994    in honor of Canadian biologist Charles Bruce Powell (1943-1998), University of Port Hancourt (Nigeria), who collected type

Fundulopanchax scheeli scheeli (Radda 1970)    in honor of Danish count, colonel, explorer and ichthyologist Jørgen J. Scheel (1916-1989), “the best connoisseur of old-world rivulines, who also clearly recognized and made known the distinctiveness of this form” (translation)

Fundulopanchax scheeli akamkpaensis Radda 1977    ensis, suffix denoting place: near Akamkpa, Southeastern State, Nigeria, type locality

Fundulopanchax sjostedti (Lönnberg 1895)    in honor of Swedish entomologist-ornithologist Bror Yngve Sjöstedt (1866-1948), who collected type [since name is Swedish, “ö” does not need to be rendered as “oe”; that rule applies to German names only]

Subgenus Gularopanchax Radda 1977    Gularo-, named for the type species, F. gularis; Panchax (=Aplocheilus), an aplocheiloid genus, often used for several African species as a common name

Fundulopanchax deltaensis (Radda 1976)    ensis, suffix denoting place: delta, referring to Niger River delta, Nigeria, type locality

Fundulopanchax gularis (Boulenger 1902)    throat, presumably referring to purple band on each side of head of males, “passing round to the other side over the lower jaw”

Fundulopanchax kribianus (Radda 1975)    anus, belonging to: Kribi, Cameroon, near type locality

Fundulopanchax schwoiseri (Scheel & Radda 1974)    in honor of naturalist Viktor Schwoiser, resident of Kumba, Cameroon, who collected type

Subgenus Paludopanchax Radda 1977    paludis, swamp, referring to the occurrence of its species in the Rhaphia swamps and swampy outcrops of streams in the marshy rainforests of the coastal plains of West-central Africa; Panchax (=Aplocheilus), an aplocheiloid genus, often used for several African species as a common name

Fundulopanchax arnoldi (Boulenger 1908)    in honor of German aquarist Johann Paul Arnold (1869-1952), who provided type specimens from his aquaria, “brought over live from the mouth of the Niger [River]”

Fundulopanchax avichang Malumbres & Castelo 2001    Fang word meaning small, referring to its size, <40 mm TL, significantly smaller than its congeners

Fundulopanchax filamentosus Meinken 1933    with filaments, presumably referring to filamentous extensions on anal and caudal fins of males

Fundulopanchax robertsoni (Radda & Scheel 1974)    in honor of J. T. Robertson, manager of planting at Cameroon Development Corporation, a rubber plantation in Ekona, Cameroon, type locality; he is also an aquarist and drew the authors’ attention to this species

Fundulopanchax rubrolabialis (Radda 1973)    rubro-, red; labialis, of the lips, referring to bright crimson border on lower lip of males

Subgenus Paraphyosemion Radda 1977    para-, near, proposed as a subgenus of Aphyosemion by Kottelat (1976), but name not made available until Radda 1977

Fundulopanchax amieti (Radda 1976)    in honor of French zoologist Jean-Louis Amiet (b. 1936), University of Yaoundé (Cameroon), “with heartfelt thanks for his valuable advice” (translation) concerning the fishes of Cameroon, where this species in endemic                   

Fundulopanchax cinnamomeus (Clausen 1963)    cinnamon colored, referring to yellow-brown body color of males

Fundulopanchax gardneri gardneri (Boulenger 1911)    in honor of Capt. R. D. Gard’ner (no other information available), who collected fishes in Nigeria for the British Museum, presumably including type of this one

Fundulopanchax gardneri lacustris (Radda 1974)    lacustrine (belonging to a lake), described from a drying waterhole in the drainage of Lake Ejagham, Cameroon

Fundulopanchax gardneri mamfensis (Radda 1974)    ensis, suffix denoting place: Mamfe plains, Cameroon, type locality

Fundulopanchax gardneri nigerianus (Clausen 1963)    anus, belonging to: Nigeria, where it is endemic

Fundulopanchax gardneri obuduensis (Wright & Jeremy 1974)    ensis, suffix denoting place: Obudu, Nigeria, type locality

Fundulopanchax gresensi Berkenkamp 2003    in honor of German aquarist Horst Gresens, who did “much field work with this species” (translation) in Cameroon over the course of two decades (1984-2012)

Fundulopanchax intermittens (Radda 1974)    etymology not explained; intermittens usually means intermittent (i.e., irregular), but in this case appears to mean intermediate (in between or in the middle), possibly referring to its distribution between the northerly F. moensis and the southerly F. traudeae, or (per Huber, 2010) to intermediate color pattern of male sides between the same two species

Fundulopanchax mirabilis (Radda 1970)    splendid or striking, allusion not explained, probably referring to male coloration: sky-blue to dark blue with crimson peaks on sides, posterior body red becoming a deep purple, “against which the bright blue shiny scales contrast wonderfully” (translation)

Fundulopanchax moensis (Radda 1970)    ensis, suffix denoting place: large affluent of Mo River, between Kendem and Noumba, Cameroon, type locality

Fundulopanchax ndianus (Scheel 1968)    anus, belonging to: Ndian River drainage, Nigeria-Cameroon border, where the species is said to originate

Fundulopanchax puerzli (Radda & Scheel 1974)    in honor of Eduard Pürzl, Austrian aquarist and fish photographer, who collected type and first kept this species in the aquarium

Fundulopanchax spoorenbergi (Berkenkamp 1976)    in honor of Dutch aquarist Frank Spoorenberg, who discovered this species in an Amsterdam aquarium store                  

Fundulopanchax traudeae (Radda 1971)    in honor of Traude, Radda’s wife, for “always showing great interest in and understanding of [his] studies” (translation)

Fundulopanchax walkeri walkeri (Boulenger 1911)    in honor of the late Robert Bruce Napoleon Walker (1832-1901), West African trader, explorer, anthropologist and natural history collector, who “obtained” type specimens at Bokitsa Mine, Ghana                          

Fundulopanchax walkeri spurrelli (Boulenger 1913)    in honor of physician-zoologist Herbert George Flaxman Spurrell (1877-1918), who collected type

Subgenus Pauciradius Wildekamp & van der Zee 2005    paucus, few; radius, ray, referring to fewer dorsal- and anal-fin rays compared to other Fundulopanchax subgenera

Fundulopanchax marmoratus (Radda 1973)    marbled, referring to irregular and interrupted red dots forming a marbled pattern on caudal peduncle of males

Fundulopanchax oeseri (Schmidt 1928)    in honor of German physician Richard Öser, who collected plants and animals in Africa and was particularly interested in how some frogs bred in the water collecting in plants; he collected type

Fundulosoma Ahl 1924    soma, body, having the shape of Fundulus (which at the time included African species but is now restricted to the North American Fundulidae) but differing in its dentition

Fundulosoma thierryi Ahl 1924    in honor of Gaston Thierry (1866-1904), an Oberleutnant (First Lieutenant) in the Imperial German Army, sent to Dahomey (now Benin, type locality) to enforce German control over the country and collect samples of local fauna, including type of this killifish; he was killed in Cameroon (then a German colony) by a poisoned arrow

Nothobranchius Peters 1868    nothos, false; branchius, gill, referring to presence of “free” (translation) pseudobranchs (small gills or reduced gill arches on inside of opercle); according to Wildekamp (2004), these “false gills” are actually preopercular neuromasts housed in an open groove that give the impression of another gill opening

Subgenus Nothobranchius

Nothobranchius furzeri Jubb 1971    in honor of aquarium hobbyist and bird breeder Richard E. Furzer of Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe), “through whose efforts this beautiful fish was introduced to Nothobranchius enthusiasts”

Nothobranchius kadleci Reichard 2010    in honor of the late Jaroslav Kadlec (1951-2006, Brno, Czech Republic), “a renowned killifish breeder recognized worldwide for his articles on killifish breeding, ecology, and his photographs” (pronounced khadlatsi)                     

Nothobranchius krysanovi Shidlovskiy, Watters & Wildekamp 2010    in honor of Eugeny Y. Krysanov, Russian Academy of Science, who carried out cytological studies on Nothobranchius species, as well as the effects of radiation on their chromosomes in the Chernobyl area

Nothobranchius mkuziensis (Fowler 1934)    ensis, suffix denoting place: Mkuzi River, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Nothobranchius orthonotus (Peters 1844)    orthos, straight; notus, back, referring to straight (flat) dorsal surface from snout to tail

Nothobranchius pienaari Shidlovskiy, Watters & Wildekamp 2010    in honor of Uys de Villiers “Toll” Pienaar (1930-2011), biologist of the Kruger National Park (South Africa) and discoverer of Nothobranchius species (but not this one), for his efforts to protect and conserve these populations

Nothobranchius rachovii Ahl 1926    in honor of German aquarist Arthur Rachow (1884-1960), to whom the Zoological Museum of Berlin (now Museum für Naturkunde) “owes a large number of valuable fishes” (translation)

Subgenus Adiniops Myers 1924    ops, appearance, resembling the North American genus Adinia (=Fundulus, Fundulidae)

Nothobranchius albimarginatus Watters, Wildekamp & Cooper 1998    albus, white; marginatus, margined, referring to white margins on dorsal and anal fins of males

Nothobranchius annectens Watters, Wildekamp & Cooper 1998    linking or joining, referring to how this species is presumed to be a link between N. guentheri from the island of Zanzibar and members of the N. guentheri species group living on the Tanzanian mainland

Nothobranchius balamaensis Bragança & Chakona 2022    –ensis, Latin suffix denoting place: Balama region, Cabo Delgado Province, Mozambique, type locality

Nothobranchius cardinalis Watters, Cooper & Wildekamp 2008    red, referring to the “striking, dominantly” red coloration of males, alluding to blood-red vesture worn by cardinals

Nothobranchius eggersi Seegers 1982    in honor of German aquarist Gerd (elsewhere given as Gerhard) Eggers, for his camaraderie during two trips to Tanzania, which led to the discovery of this species; he also collected plants and animals other than fishes, which he generally made available

Nothobranchius elongatus Wildekamp 1982    elongate, referring to its rather slender body (compared to its deeper-bodied congeners)

Nothobranchius flammicomantis Wildekamp, Watters & Sainthouse 1998    flamma, fire; comantis, hairy, i.e., with fire-like hairs, referring to orange, filamentous anterior anal-fin rays of males

Nothobranchius foerschi Wildekamp & Berkenkamp 1979    in honor of German physician and aquarist Walter Foersch (1932-1993), who has “continuously shared his experiences in keeping and breeding species of the [killifish] family through publications and lectures” (translation); he also was the first to breed (1959) and distribute this species

Nothobranchius fuscotaeniatus Seegers 1997    fuscus, dark; taeniatus, striped, referring to dark bars across body, especially males but females also

Nothobranchius geminus Wildekamp, Watters & Sainthouse 2002    twin or double, referring to reflective silver spots on upper half of iris appearing as twin stars and making the fish visible from above when viewed in its natural habitat

Nothobranchius guentheri (Pfeffer 1893)    in honor of ichthyologist-herpetologist Albert Günther (1830-1914), who reported this species as Fundulus (now Nothobranchius) orthonotus in 1867

Nothobranchius hengstleri Valdesalici 2007    in honor of killifish hobbyist Holger Hengstler (Munich, Germany), who helped collect type

Nothobranchius insularis Costa 2017    of an island, referring to Mafia Island, Tanzania, where it appears to be endemic

Nothobranchius interruptus Wildekamp & Berkenkamp 1979    interrupted or broken, referring to interrupted blue-gray terminal bar in caudal fin of males                   

Nothobranchius janpapi Wildekamp 1977    in honor of Jan Pap, Dutch aquarist and development assistant in Tanzania, who discovered this species in 1975 and sent specimens to an aquarist in Holland

Nothobranchius jubbi jubbi Wildekamp & Berkenkamp 1979    in honor of Reginald A. “Rex” Jubb (1905-1987), Freshwater Fish Section, Albany Museum, Grahamstown, South Africa, for his “pioneering” (translation) taxonomic work on Nothobranchius                           

Nothobranchius jubbi cyaneus Seegers 1981    blue, referring to main color of male sides and unpaired fins

Nothobranchius kilomberoensis Wildekamp, Watters & Sainthouse 2002    ensis, suffix denoting place: floodplain of Kilombero River, Tanzania, where it appears to be endemic

Nothobranchius kirki Jubb 1969    in honor of R. G. Kirk, fish biologist, Agricultural Research Services, Ministry of Natural Resources, Malawi, who collected type

Nothobranchius korthausae Meinken 1973    in honor of German aquarist Edith Korthaus (1923-1987), editor of Das Aquarium, who collected type

Nothobranchius krammeri Valdesalici & Hengstler 2008    in honor of Werner Krammer (Pöttmes, Germany), a “well known German aquarist, who first successfully bred this species”

Nothobranchius kwalensis Costa 2019    ensis, suffix denoting place: Kwale County, Coastal Province, Kenya, where type locality is situated

Nothobranchius lourensi Wildekamp 1977    in honor of Jan Lourens, biologist of the United Nations Development Programme (Dar es Salaam, Tanzania), who collected type

Nothobranchius lucius Wildekamp, Shidlovskiy & Watters 2009    Latin for pike, referring to “stronger dentition, partly predatory behavior and pike-like appearance” compared to congeners

Nothobranchius luekei Seegers 1984    in honor of German aquarist Karl Heinz Lüke (b.1937), the first to breed this species

Nothobranchius makondorum Wildekamp, Shidlovskiy & Watters 2009    orum, commemorative suffix, plural: dedicated to the Makonde tribe of southeastern Tanzania and northeastern Mozambique, whose territory covers, in part, the distribution of this species

Nothobranchius melanospilus (Pfeffer 1896)    melanos, black; spilos, spot, referring to black spots on sides of females

Nothobranchius niassa Valdesalici, Bills, Dorn, Reichwald & Cellerino 2012    named for Niassa Reserve, Lukombe River drainage, Mozambique, only known area of occurrence

Nothobranchius nikiforovi Nagy, Watters & Raspopova 2021    in honor of Russian killifish enthusiast Andrei Nikiforov, who participated in several field surveys aimed at research on Nothobranchius fishes in Tanzania, who co-discovered and co-collected type specimens

Nothobranchius palmqvisti (Lönnberg 1907)    in honor of Gustaf Palmqvist (also spelled Palmquist), the “mæcenas” (generous patron) of the Swedish Kilimanjaro-Meru expedition (1905-1906), during which type was collected

Nothobranchius patrizii (Vinciguerra 1927)    in honor of Saverio Patrizi Naro Montoro (1902-1957), Italian explorer, zoologist, speleologist and collector, who collected type

Nothobranchius rubripinnis Seegers 1986    rubri-, red; pinnis, fin, referring to red pectoral, anal and caudal fins of males

Nothobranchius ruudwildekampi Costa 2009    in honor of Dutch aquarist and amateur ichthyologist Rudolf (“Ruud”) H. Wildekamp (1945-2019), for his “fine taxonomic work” on the genus

Nothobranchius vosseleri Ahl 1924    in honor of German zoologist and Hamburg Zoo director Julius Voseller (1861-1933), who collected type

Nothobranchius wattersi Ng’oma, Valdesalici, Reichwald & Cellerino 2013    in honor of Brian R. Watters, South African-Canadian geologist and killifish enthusiast, who has “studied Malawi Nothobranchius and their biotopes extensively, and has also made significant contributions to the further understanding of the ecology of Nothobranchius fishes”

Nothobranchius willerti Wildekamp 1992    in honor of German aquarist Manfred Willert, who helped collect type and donated it to Wildekamp

Subgenus Cynobranchius Costa 2018    combination of Cynolebias (referring to superficial resemblance with this cynolebiid [or rivulid] genus from South America) and Nothobranchius

Nothobranchius bojiensis Wildekamp & Haas 1992    ensis, suffix denoting place: Boji Plain, Kenya, type locality

Nothobranchius fasciatus Wildekamp & Haas 1992    banded, referring to 15-20 irregular crossbars on posterior body of males

Nothobranchius microlepis (Vinciguerra 1897)    micro-, small; lepis, scale, referring to smaller, more numerous scales compared to congeners known at the time (guentheri, melanospilus, orthonotus, taeniopygus)

Subgenus Paranothobranchius Seegers 1985    para-, near, proposed as a separate genus said to be the “closest” (translation) to Nothobranchius

Nothobranchius matanduensis Watters, Nagy & Bellstedt 2020    ensis, suffix denoting place: Matandu River drainage, eastern Tanzania, type locality

Nothobranchius ocellatus (Seegers 1985)    having little eyes, referring to eye-spot (often divided into 2-3 smaller spots) on caudal peduncle of juveniles of both sexes and of adult females

Subgenus Plesiobranchius Costa 2018    combination of Plesiolebias (a cynolebiid [or rivulid] genus from South America) and Nothobranchius, referring to superficial resemblance of N. virgatus with Plesiolebias

Nothobranchius occultus Valdesalici 2014    hidden, referring to the “long time period that this species remained hidden following its discovery” (collected in 1950 or 1951, possibly extinct)

Nothobranchius virgatus Chambers 1984    striped, referring to “striking” russet-red stripes running obliquely forward and upward along every second or third transverse scale row of males

Subgenus Zononothobranchius Radda 1969    zono-, band, i.e., banded Nothobranchius, referring to band in caudal fin of N. brieni, N. rubroreticulatus and N. taeniopygus           

Nothobranchius albertinensis Nagy, Watters & Bellstedt 2020    –ensis, suffix denoting place: Albertine Rift of Uganda, valley in which it occurs in the northern Lake Albert basin, extending into the Albert Nile drainage

Nothobranchius angelae Watters, Nagy & Bellstedt 2019    in honor of Angela Watters, wife of the first author, for her “unwavering support for his many field trips to Africa to study fishes of the genus Nothobranchius, during which she also very capably maintained the fishes in the tanks of his large fish room”

Nothobranchius attenboroughi Nagy, Watters & Bellstedt 2020    in honor of David F. Attenborough (b. 1926), broadcaster and natural historian, for his “dedicated” efforts to promote biophilia: “raising awareness of the wonders and beauties of nature for so many people worldwide, promoting awareness of the importance of biodiversity conservation, and above all, inspiring so many researchers in the field of natural history, including the authors of this paper”

Nothobranchius bellemansi Valdesalici 2014    in honor of Marc Bellemans of Belgium, “professional biologist and conservationist, collector, aquarist, and friend,” who collected type

Nothobranchius boklundi Valdesalici 2010    in honor of Jørn Boklund of Denmark, “collector, aquarist and friend,” who collected type

Nothobranchius brieni Poll 1938    in honor of friend and zoological colleague Paul Brien (1894-1975), Université libre de Bruxelles (Belgium), who collected type

Nothobranchius capriviensis Watters, Wildekamp & Shidlovskiy 2015    ensis, suffix denoting place: Caprivi Strip, historical name (after German statesman Count Leo von Caprivi, 1831-1899) for narrow extension of northeastern Namibia, where this species occurs

Nothobranchius chochamandai Nagy 2014    in honor of Auguste Chocha Manda, University of Lubumbashi (Katanga, Democratic Republic of the Congo), for his dedication in researching the fishes of his country

Nothobranchius cooperi Nagy, Watters & Bellstedt 2017    in honor of Barry J. Cooper, “renowned collector and breeder of killifish, for his significant contributions to the field study of Nothobranchius and to the killifish hobby in general”

Nothobranchius derhami Valdesalici & Amato 2019    in honor of Swiss ichthyologist and aquarist Patrick de Rham (1936-2022), who discovered this species in 1985 and observed part of its life cycle in the field

Nothobranchius ditte Nagy 2018    in honor of Ditte, nickname of Nagy’s “beloved” wife Edit Csikós, for her “patience during all the time I am away for collecting fishes and also for the care of keeping all the fish alive during my absences” [a noun in apposition, without the matronymic “ae”]

Nothobranchius elucens Nagy 2021    Latin for “shining out,” referring to distinctive light-blue subdistal band in anal and caudal fins, “contrasting and shining out” of the overall dark coloration of body and fins of males

Nothobranchius flagrans Nagy 2014    flaming, blazing, burning or glowing, referring to vivid orange-red color of submarginal bands on anal and caudal fins of males

Nothobranchius hassoni Valdesalici & Wildekamp 2004    in honor of Belgian conservationist Michel Hasson (b. 1955), for his assistance to obtain the type specimens, additional information, and for his support to help the National Park of Upemba (type locality, Democratic Republic of the Congo)

Nothobranchius hoermanni Nagy, Watters & Bellstedt 2020   in honor of Alwin Hörmann (Kühnhausen, Germany), “well-known” aquarist and breeder of Nothobranchius fishes who maintained and propagated type specimens; “Without his dedication and expertise, the population from the type locality would not have been available for researchers and others”

Nothobranchius itigiensis Nagy, Watters & Bellstedt 2020    –ensis, suffix denoting place: Itigi township, central Tanzania, near where type locality is situated

Nothobranchius ivanovae Valdesalici 2012    in honor of aquarist and collector Iva Ivanova (Dupnitsa, Bulgaria), who collected type with Kiril Kardashev (see N. kardashevi)

Nothobranchius kafuensis Wildekamp & Rosenstock 1989    ensis, suffix denoting place: Kafue River system, Zambia, where type locality (seasonal pool in Kafue National Park) is situated (also occurs in Zambesi River system)

Nothobranchius kardashevi Valdesalici 2012    in honor of Kiril Kardashev (Dupnitsa, Bulgaria), “friend, aquarist, collector,” who collected type with Iva Ivanova (see N. ivanovae)

Nothobranchius malaissei Wildekamp 1978    in honor of Prof. Malaisse, University of Lubumbashi (Democratic Republic of the Congo), who collected type, probably botanist-ecologist François Malaisse (b. 1934) [in a 2004 publication, Wildekamp gave first name as “Noël”]

Nothobranchius milvertzi Nagy 2014    in honor of Finn Christian Milvertz (Solrød Strand, Denmark), “renowned breeder and collector of killifish”

Nothobranchius moameensis Nagy, Watters & Bellstedt 2020    –ensis, suffix denoting place: Moame River drainage, Tanzania, where type locality is situated

Nothobranchius neumanni (Hilgendorf 1905)    in honor of German ornithologist Oskar Neumann (1867-1946), who collected type

Nothobranchius nubaensis Valdesalici, Bellemans, Kardashev & Golubtsov 2009    ensis, suffix denoting place: Nuba Mountains, Sudan, where type locality is situated (also occurs in Ethiopia) [name provisionally published by Bellemans in 2003 but considered unavailable since specimens were still alive and no types were deposited]

Nothobranchius oestergaardi Valdesalici & Amato 2011    in honor of collector and friend Kaj Østergaard, Denmark, for “contributions over a long period of time on field investigations that have led to the discovery of many new populations of Nothobranchius species in numerous countries”

Nothobranchius ottoschmidti Watters, Nagy & Bellstedt 2019    in honor of Otto Schmidt, a “keen birder and fish enthusiast, for his long-time and significant contributions to the study of fishes of the genus Nothobranchius

Nothobranchius polli Wildekamp 1978    in honor of Belgian ichthyologist Max Poll (1908-1991), who made an “extensive study of the relationship between the hydrography and the ichthyological fauna” of Shaba (Democratic Republic of Congo), and placed all of his notes and study material at Wildekamp’s disposal

Nothobranchius robustus Ahl 1935    robust or stout, allusion not explained, described from one specimen (now lost), possibly referring to deeper body compared to N. melanospilus and N. mayeri (=orthonotus)

Nothobranchius rosenstocki Valdesalici & Wildekamp 2005    in honor of John Rosenstock (Hellerup, Denmark), who collected this new species (but not type) during one of his many journeys in Africa for the Danish Development Assistance Organisation

Nothobranchius rubroreticulatus Blache & Miton 1960    rubro-, red; reticulatus, net-like or netted, referring to dark-red border around scales, giving body a distinct reticulated pattern

Nothobranchius rungwaensis Watters, Nagy & Bellstedt 2019    ensis, suffix denoting place: Rungwa River drainage, Tanzania, only known area of occurrence

Nothobranchius sagittae Wildekamp, Watters & Shidlovskiy 2013    arrow, referring to relatively pointed head and slender shape

Nothobranchius sainthousei Nagy, Cotterill & Bellstedt 2016    in honor of Ian Sainthouse, “renowned breeder and collector of killifish, for his special longstanding dedication to researches on the genus Nothobranchius

Nothobranchius seegersi Valdesalici & Kardashev 2011    in honor of “enthusiastic” ichthyologist and aquarist Lother Seegers (1947-2018), the first collector of this species

Nothobranchius serengetiensis Wildekamp, Watters & Shidlovskiy 2013    ensis, suffix denoting place: Serengeti National Park, Tanzania, where and near where this species occurs

Nothobranchius skeltoni Watters, Nagy & Bellstedt 2019    in honor of Paul H. Skelton (b. 1948), Director Emeritus of the South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity, for his “dedication to the science of ichthyology” and his “vast contributions to the study and documentation of African freshwater fishes and biodiversity”

Nothobranchius sonjae Watters, Nagy & Bellstedt 2019    in honor of Sonja Hengstler, who helped collect type with her husband, “renowned killifish enthusiast” Holger Hengstler

Nothobranchius steinforti Wildekamp 1977    in honor of Theo Steinfort, Dutch Nothobranchius breeder who, with Wildekamp and others, helped collect type; in addition, his breeding this species helped make it available to other killifish enthusiasts

Nothobranchius streltsovi Valdesalici 2016    in honor of killifish aquarist Sergey Streltsov, who helped collect paratypes

Nothobranchius symoensi Wildekamp 1978    in honor of Belgian botanist-ecologist Jean-Jacques Symöns (1927-2014), University of Lubumbashi (Democratic Republic of the Congo), who collected type

Nothobranchius taeniopygus Hilgendorf 1891    taenio-, band; pygus, rump or buttock (i.e., anus), referring to white (sometimes pale yellow) band on anal fin of males                   

Nothobranchius taiti Nagy 2019    in honor of Colin C. Tait, a South African of Scottish parentage, who was the first to collect this species (in 1969 while working as a fish ranger) and published field observations about Nothobranchius habitats in Zambia, as well as notes on their behavior in captivity; he was described by a colleague as “marvellous company to have in the long dark nights in the bush, with his love of jokes, and his fund of songs and stories”

Nothobranchius torgashevi Valdesalici 2015    in honor of aquarist and collector Sergey Torgashev (Elektrostal, Moscow Oblast, Russia), who collected type                   

Nothobranchius ugandensis Wildekamp 1994    ensis, suffix denoting place: southern Uganda, type locality (also occurs in Kenya)

Nothobranchius usanguensis Wildekamp, Watters & Shidlovskiy 2013    ensis, suffix denoting place: Usangu Flats, south-central Tanzania, only known area of occurrence

Nothobranchius venustus Nagy, Watters & Bellstedt 2020    attractive, charming, graceful or pretty, referring to attractive appearance and distinctive coloration of the males

Pronothobranchius Radda 1969    pro-, before or primitive, proposed as a subgenus of Nothobranchius, presumably referring to its supposed ancestral position within the genus (per Huber, 2004)

Pronothobranchius chirioi Valdesalici 2013    in honor of French/Italian herpetologist Laurent Chirio (b. 1957), who collected type, for his “long-term contributions in terms of field investigations”

Pronothobranchius gambiensis (Svensson 1933)    ensis, suffix denoting place: swamp near Gambia River, Gambia, type locality (also occurs in Senegal)                       

Pronothobranchius kiyawensis (Ahl 1928)    ensis, suffix denoting place: Kiyawa River, near Katagum, Nigeria, type locality (also occurs in Chad and Central African Republic)

Pronothobranchius seymouri (Loiselle & Blair 1971)    in honor of the late Edward J. (Ted) Seymour, Technical Editor of the British Killifish Association, who died in September 1969 “after a long career of service to the killifish hobby”

Raddaella Huber 1977    ella, diminutive connoting endearment: in honor of zoologist-virologist Alfred C. Radda (1936-2022), University of Vienna, for his many contributions to the knowledge of Aphyosemion

Raddaella batesii (Boulenger 1911)    in honor of farmer and ornithologist George Latimer Bates (1863-1940), who collected specimens for the Natural History Museum (London), including type of this one

Subfamily EPIPLATINAE

Archiaphyosemion Radda 1977    archi-, upper or higher, proposed as a subgenus of Aphyosemion with a more northerly distribution

Archiaphyosemion guineense (Daget 1954)    ensis, suffix denoting place: Dabola, Guinea, type locality (also occurs in Sierra Leone and Liberia)

Callopanchax Myers 1933    callo-, beautiful, allusion not explained, originally referring to Fundulopanchax sjostedti; Panchax (=Aplocheilus), an aplocheilid genus, often used for several African species as a common name

Callopanchax monroviae (Roloff & Ladiges 1972)    of Monrovia, Liberia, about 40 km away (one account says 19 km away) from type locality (forest pool on a rubber plantation) 

Callopanchax occidentalis (Clausen 1966)    western, referring to a group of Aphyosemion (original genus) species that occur west of the Dahomey Gap, a portion of the Guinean forest-savanna mosaic in West Africa that extends to the coast in Benin, Togo and Ghana, thus separating the forest zone that covers much of the south of the region into two separate parts

Callopanchax sidibeorum Sonnenberg & Busch 2010    in honor of Samba Sidibe and his family (Conakry, Guinea), who first collected this fish and made specimens available for the ornamental fish trade, for their “high interest in this species, their effort for a sustainable use and protection of the habitat, and providing important information for the description” [originally spelled sidibei, but since name honors more than one person, spelling emended to sidibeorum in 2011; ICZN 32.5.1 forbids such a correction but emended spelling appears to be in prevailing usage]

Callopanchax toddi (Clausen 1966)    in honor of entomologist Alexander Todd, Chief Technician, Fourah Bay College (University of Sierra Leone, Freetown), who collected type

Epiplatys Gill 1862    epi-, on or over; platys, broad, wide, flat or level, allusion not explained, presumably referring to oblong head of E. sexfasciatus and/or to flat dorsal surface of anterior half of body

Subgenus Epiplatys

Epiplatys ansorgii (Boulenger 1911)    in honor of explorer William John Ansorge (1850-1913), who “obtained” type

Epiplatys atratus van der Zee, Mbimbi Mayi Munene & Sonnenberg 2013    clothed in black, referring to adult dominant males that have an almost black appearance in ethanol

Epiplatys berkenkampi Neumann 1978    in honor of Heinz Otto Berkenkamp, German aquarist and amateur ichthyologist, “who has made a name for himself identifying and distributing” (translation) pike-like killifishes (Epiplatys, Aplocheilus, Pachypanchax, Episemion)

Epiplatys boulengeri (Pellegrin 1926)    in honor of ichthyologist-herpetologist George A. Boulenger (1858-1937), a “learned colleague” (translation) who described the similar E. grahami in 1911

Epiplatys esekanus Scheel 1968    ensis, suffix denoting place: a brook 24 km north of Eséka, Cameroon, near Eséka-Jaunde-Edea road crossing, type locality

Epiplatys huberi (Radda & Pürzl 1981)    in honor of French ichthyologist and pharmaceutical executive Jean H. Huber (b. 1952), who discovered this species, and also for his work on the systematics and taxonomy of the E. multifasciatus complex and the fishes of Gabon (where this species is endemic)

Epiplatys infrafasciatus (Günther 1866)    infra-, below; fasciatus, banded, referring to six blackish-brown crossbars between lateral band and lower margin of belly and tail

Epiplatys mesogramma Huber 1980    meso-, middle; gramma, line, referring to six wide vertical crossbars on males, which begin in middle of body and cover only its lower half

Epiplatys multifasciatus (Boulenger 1913)    multi-, many; fasciatus, banded, referring to seven blackish vertical bars, including two above anal fin and two on caudal peduncle, with narrower bars sometimes present between the principal ones

Epiplatys phoeniceps Huber 1980    phoeni-, from Phoenicopterus, flamingo genus; ceps, head, referring to pink-to-red head coloration of both sexes (less intense on females)

Epiplatys rathkei Radda 1970    in honor of Radda’s “gracious host” (translation), Karl-Heinz Rathke (1932-2017), missionary in Kumba, Cameroon, type locality

Epiplatys sexfasciatus Gill 1862    sex, six; fasciatus, banded, referring to six bands below lateral line

Epiplatys togolensis Loiselle 1971    ensis, suffix denoting place: Togo, where it is endemic (“l” presumably added for euphony)

Epiplatys zenkeri (Ahl 1928)    in honor of Zenker (forename not given), who collected type, probably Georg August Zenker (1855-1922), botanist, explorer, collector and settler in Cameroon

Subgenus Aphyoplatys Clausen 1967  combination of Aphyosemion and Epiplatys, “seemingly intermediate” between these two genera

Epiplatys duboisi Poll 1952    in honor of A. Dubois, Belgian pharmacist and aquarist, who collected type

Subgenus Kulonplatys Huber 2024   kulon, Greek for western, referring to its biogeographical distribution in extreme secondary forests of northwestern Africa; platys, abridgement of Epiplatys

Epiplatys azureus Berkenkamp & Etzel 1983    latinization of the French l’zure (blue), referring to predominant body color of living males

Epiplatys barmoiensis Scheel 1968    ensis, suffix denoting place, Barmoi District, Sierra Leone, where type locality (Rokupr) is situated

Epiplatys cashneri Pezold, Ford & Schmidt 2021    in honor of the late Robert C. Cashner (1942-2018), University of New Orleans (Louisiana, USA), a mentor and teacher to the first author and a friend to many; “A recognized authority on North American freshwater fishes, his legacy also includes descriptions of two killifish species from North America and at least two students of African fishes (the first author and Hank Bart, Tulane University) who in turn have mentored another, the third author”

Epiplatys coccinatus Berkenkamp & Etzel 1982    dressed in scarlet, referring to scarlet coloration of males in life

Epiplatys dauresi Romand 1985    in honor of G. Daures, Adventist missionary in Bouaké (near type locality), Ivory Coast, who contributed to the discovery of this species

Epiplatys fasciolatus (Günther 1866)    banded, referring to nine oblique narrow brownish-black streaks on lower parts of sides of abdomen and tail, descending from middle of side forwards

Epiplatys guineensis Romand 1994    ensis, suffix denoting place: Guinea, where it is endemic

Epiplatys hildegardae Berkenkamp 1978    in honor of Berkenkamp’s wife Hildegard, for her understanding during the course of his “private scientific work” (translation)

Epiplatys josianae Berkenkamp & Etzel 1983    in honor of Josiane Vandersmissen, wife of Jean-Pol Vandersmissen, President of the Association Killiphile Francophone de Belgique

Epiplatys kassiapleuensis Berkenkamp & Etzel 1977    ensis, suffix denoting place: creek near Kassiapleu, Hochland von Man, Ivory Coast, type locality

Epiplatys lamottei Daget 1954    in honor of French biologist Maxime Lamotte (1920-2007), who collected type

Epiplatys njalaensis Neumann 1976    ensis, suffix denoting place: Njala, Southwest Province, Sierra Leone, type locality (also occurs in Guinea)

Epiplatys olbrechtsi Poll 1941    in honor of Belgian ethnologist Frans M. Olbrechts (1899-1958), who led an ethnographic expedition to the Ivory Coast (type locality) in 1938-39 and collected type (also occurs in Liberia and Guinea)

Epiplatys puetzi Berkenkamp & Etzel 1985    in honor of German aquarist Wilfried Pütz (b. 1940), who collected type with the junior author in 1962

Epiplatys roloffi Romand 1978    in honor of German aquarist and amateur ichthyologist Erhard Roloff (1903-1980)

Epiplatys ruhkopfi Berkenkamp & Etzel 1980    in honor of German aquarist Willi Ruhkopf, an active member of the Deutsche Killifisch Gemeinschaft, as well as a connoisseur of native orchids and a fish photographer

Epiplatys tototaensis Romand 1978    ensis, suffix denoting place: near Totota, Liberia, type locality

Epiplatys zimiensis Berkenkamp 1977    –ensis, suffix denoting place: creek at Zimi (entrance area of the Maho River), Pujehun District, Southwest Province, Sierra Leone, type locality

Subgenus Lycocyprinus Peters 1868    lycos, wolf, allusion not explained, possibly referring to larger teeth in inner row of jaw compared to Poecilia (original genus of type species Poecilia sexfasciata Peters 1864, preoccupied by E. sexfasciatus Gill 1863 [=E. monroviae]); cyprinus, carp, possibly referring to their cyprinid-like appearance, giving rise to the common name “toothed carp” (cyprinodont)

Epiplatys chaperi (Sauvage 1882)    in honor of botanist-conchologist Maurice Armand Chaper (1834-1896), who collected type

Epiplatys dageti Poll 1953    in honor of Poll’s colleague, ichthyologist Jacques Daget (1919-2009), Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle (Paris)

Epiplatys etzeli Berkenkamp 1975    in honor of German veterinarian and killifish aquarist Vollrad Etzel (1944-2012), who collected type, and who “through his exacting and extensive field work and supportive help made the author’s revisionary studies of pike-like killifishes of the Ivory Coast possible” (translation)

Epiplatys monroviae Arnoult & Daget 1965    of Monrovia, Liberia, type locality

Epiplatys samborskii Neumann 2003    in honor of German aquarist Christoph Samborski, who collected holotype

Epiplatys schreiberi Berkenkamp 1975    in honor of German killifish hobbyist Gerhard Schreiber, who collected holotype

Epiplatys sheljuzhkoi Poll 1953    in honor of Ukrainian-German entomologist Leo Sheljuzhko (1890-1969), who collected fish for Werner Aquarium importers (now called Transfish, Munich, Germany), including holotype of this one

Epiplatys spillmanni Arnoult 1960    in honor of Arnoult’s colleague, ichthyologist C. J. Spillman (Arnoult identified him as M. J. Spillman)

Subgenus Parepiplatys Clausen 1967    para-, near, a subgenus of Epiplatys “distinguished mainly by its frontal lateral line pattern”

Epiplatys biafranus Radda 1970    anus, belonging to: Biafra, a secessionist state in West Africa that existed from 1967 to 1970 (now part of Nigeria), where type locality (near Port Harcourt) was situated at the time

Epiplatys chevalieri (Pellegrin 1904)    in honor of French botanist and explorer Auguste Jean Baptiste Chevalier (1873-1956), who led expedition that collected type

Epiplatys grahami (Boulenger 1911)    in honor of medical entomologist W. M. Graham, specializing in blood-sucking midges, and director of the Medical Research Institute in Lagos, Nigeria (type locality); he presented type to the British Museum (Natural History)

Epiplatys longiventralis (Boulenger 1911)    longus, long; ventralis, ventral, referring to its long ventral fins, “½ as long as head in females, much produced and at least as long as pectoral [fin] in adult males”

Epiplatys maeseni (Poll 1941)    in honor of colleague A. Maesen, who helped collect type, probably Belgian ethnologist Albert Maesen (1915-1992), who explored the Ivory Coast (type locality) with his professor Frans M. Olbrechts (see E. olbrechtsi) in 1938-39; later became Chief Curator of the Museum of Central Africa in Tervuren [also known as Nimbapanchax leucopterygius Sonnenberg & Busch 2009, a junior synonym]

Epiplatys neumanni Berkenkamp 1993    in honor of Werner Neumann (Zwickau, Germany), author of the 1983 book Die Hechtlinge, which deals with aquarium care of pike-like killifishes (Epiplatys, Aplocheilus, Pachypanchax, Episemion); he also described E. njalaensis in 1976

Epiplatys nigricans (Boulenger 1913)    blackish, referring to blackish-brown coloration, presumably its color in alcohol

Epiplatys sangmelinensis (Ahl 1928)    ensis, suffix denoting place: Sangmélina, Cameroon, type locality

Epiplatys singa (Boulenger 1899)    Singa, local name for this killifish, and perhaps other Epiplatys species, in the lower Congo River system of West-central Africa

Subgenus Pseudepiplatys Clausen 1967    pseudo-, false; Clausen believed E. annulatus was “so aberrant” from other Epiplatys (e.g., smaller size, long caudal fin of males, “peculiar” fluttering movement during swimming) that it deserved its own genus

Epiplatys annulatus (Boulenger 1915)    ringed, referring to four broad black rings around lemon-yellow bodies of both sexes, one at head, one at caudal peduncle, two at midsection

Subgenus Xerosplatys Huber 2024    xeros, Greek for dry, referring to its biogeographical distribution mainly in savanna and Sahel regions of Africa; platys, abridgement of Epiplatys

Epiplatys bifasciatus (Steindachner 1881)    bi-, two; fasciatus, banded, referring to two brown longitudinal stripes on body

Epiplatys lokoensis Berkenkamp & Etzel 1978    –ensis, suffix denoting place: Port Loko District, west of Port Loko at Bonkorkon, western Sierra Leone, type locality [species inquirenda, provisionally included here]

Epiplatys spilargyreius (Duméril 1861)    spilos, mark or spot; argyros, silvery, referring to silver and black spots on head and/or silvery spot between the eyes (name does not refer to “incomplete spots” on sides as reported by Wildekamp [1996])

Nimbapanchax Sonnenberg & Busch 2009    Nimba, named for Mount Nimba region (southeastern Guinea, northern Liberia, western Ivory Coast), around which most of the included species are found; Panchax (=Aplocheilus), an aplocheilid genus, often used for several African species as a common name

Nimbapanchax jeanpoli (Berkenkamp & Etzel 1979)    in honor of Jean-Pol Vandersmissen, President of the Association Killiphile Francophone de Belgique, “for his services to killiphiles — especially regarding fish of the Roloffia [=Callopanchax] genus — and his work in the form of a ‘redescription’ concering this species” (which he identified as Epiplatys melantereon [= Scriptaphyosemion liberiense] in 1977)

Nimbapanchax melanopterygius Sonnenberg & Busch 2009    melanos, black; pterygion, diminutive of pteryx, fin, referring to dark margin on anal fin of males

Nimbapanchax petersi (Sauvage 1882)    in honor of Wilhelm C. H. Peters (1815-1883), German naturalist and explorer who traveled to Africa and returned to Berlin with an enormous collection of natural history specimens (but not this one); he proposed Nothobranchius in 1868

Nimbapanchax viridis (Ladiges & Roloff 1973)    green, presumably referring to general body color of males (green brown above, pale green below, iridescent green to blue green on sides)

Scriptaphyosemion Radda & Pürzl 1987    scriptus, written, proposed as a subgenus of Aphyosemion with red markings on sides of males

Scriptaphyosemion banforense (Seegers 1982)    ensis, suffix denoting place: Banfora, Burkina Faso, type locality

Scriptaphyosemion bertholdi (Roloff 1965)    in honor of German aquarist Karl Berthold, “diligent Aphyosemion breeder” (translation)

Scriptaphyosemion brueningi (Roloff 1971)    in honor of Christian Brüning, “who died in 1943 as the result of an air raid on Hamburg, and who pioneered the import of fishes — especially Aphyosemion species — from the West African coast before the war” (translation), and wrote numerous essays on newly available aquarium fishes

Scriptaphyosemion cauveti (Romand & Ozouf-Costaz 1995)    in honor of French aquarist Christian Cauvet, who first brought attention to this species “several years ago” and collected type with the authors

Scriptaphyosemion chaytori (Roloff 1971)    in honor of Sierra Leonean ichthyologist Daniel Chaytor, who supported Roloff in the study and collection of West African fishes and partly collected and studied this species himself

Scriptaphyosemion etzeli (Berkenkamp 1979)    in honor of German veterinarian and killifish aquarist Vollrad Etzel (1944-2012), who helped collect type and undertook “considerable preliminary travels” (translation) to find it; Berkenkamp also pays tribute to Etzel’s love for travel, noting how he has visited the Ivory Coast, India, Nepal, New Guinea, Sierrra Leone, Sumatra, and Thailand

Scriptaphyosemion fredrodi (Vandersmissen, Etzel & Berkenkamp 1980)    in honor of Fred and Rod: A.J. “Fred” Wright, leader of expedition that discovered fish and ex-Technical Editor of the British Killifish Association (BKA), and Rod Roberts, then current president of the BKA, for their “important work” and their “constant dedication” to “English killiphiles and elsewhere” (translation) [although name honors more than one person, it avoids the plural –orum suffix since “fredrod” is considered an arbitrary combination of two personal names]

Scriptaphyosemion geryi (Lambert 1958)    in honor of ichthyologist Jacques Géry (1917-2007), who discovered this species and was the first to write about it

Scriptaphyosemion guignardi (Romand 1981)    in honor of Alain Guignard, Killiclub de France, who made several collecting trips to Africa and helped collect type of this species

Scriptaphyosemion liberiense (Boulenger 1908)    ensis, suffix denoting place: Monrovia, Liberia, type locality (also occurs in Sierra Leone)

Scriptaphyosemion nigrifluvi (Romand 1982)    nigri-, black; fluvius, river, referring to Black River, local name of Bafing River, Guinea, type locality

Scriptaphyosemion roloffi (Roloff 1936)    in honor of German aquarist and amateur ichthyologist Erhard Roloff (1903-1980), who collected type [manuscript name proposed by Ernst Ahl, unintentionally made available by Roloff, therefore he is author of name that honors himself; at one point this taxon was briefly known as Roloffia roloffi roloffi (Roloff 1936) (!)]

Scriptaphyosemion schmitti (Romand 1979)    in honor of aquarist Gerald Schmitt, Killiclub de France, who helped Romand collect type and determine the species’ distribution

Scriptaphyosemion wieseae Sonnenberg & Busch 2012    in honor of Barbara Wiese (Remscheid, Germany), who accompanied the junior author on most of his research trips in West Africa, co-collected type, and was the first who recognized this as a new Scriptaphyosemion species