COMMENTS
v. 30.0 – 18 June 2024 view/download PDF
5 families • 37 genera/subgenera • 277 species/subspecies
Family GYMNOTIDAE Nakedback Knifefishes
2 genera • 56 species/subspecies • Taxonomic note: Craig et al. (2019) proposed six subgenera for Gymnotus, but these names are currently unavailable because they were published without Zoobank registration in an electronic journal.
Electrophorus Gill 1864 electro-, electricity; phorus, bearer, referring to its ability to generate a powerful electric shock (may also allude to an 18th-century manual capacitive generator of the same name)
Electrophorus electricus (Linnaeus 1766) referring to its ability to generate a powerful electric shock
Electrophorus multivalvulus Nakashima 1941 multi-, many; valvulus, with folding doors, referring to a series of irregular lichen-like skin folds inside the mouth; Nakashima guessed that their function was related to the generation of electricity, but they actually serve as lungs, allowing electric eels to absorb oxygen from atmospheric air [multivalvulatus, sometimes seen in the literature, is a misspelling]
Electrophorus varii de Santana, Wosiacki, Crampton, Sabaj, Dillman, Mendes-Júnior & Castro e Castro 2019 in honor of Richard P. Vari (1949-2016), Smithsonian Institution, for his contributions to ichthyology [may be a junior synonym of E. multivalvulus]
Electrophorus voltai de Santana, Wosiacki, Crampton, Sabaj, Dillman, Castro e Castro, Bastos & Vari 2019 in honor of Alessandro Giuseppe Antonio Anastasio Volta (1745-1827), inventor of electric battery and for whom the “volt” is named (with a discharge of 860 V, this species is the strongest living bioelectricity generator known)
Gymnotus Linnaeus 1758 gymnos, bare or naked; notus, back, referring to absence of dorsal fin (a trait common to all knifefishes)
Gymnotus anguillaris Hoedeman 1962 eel-like, referring to the long, “eel-like configuration” of its body compared to G. carapo
Gymnotus arapaima Albert & Crampton 2001 named for the osteoglossomorph fish Arapaima gigas, which it resembles in having an elongate and slightly depressed head
Gymnotus arapiuns Kim, Crampton & Albert 2020 named for the Rio Arapiuns, a blackwater river and tributary of the Tapajós River in Pará, Brazil, where this knifefish occurs
Gymnotus ardilai Maldonado-Ocampo & Albert 2004 in honor of Carlos A. Ardila Rodriguez, President of the Colombian Ichthyological Association (ACICTIOS), for contributions to the knowledge of Colombian ichthyology
Gymnotus aripuana Kim, Crampton & Albert 2020 named for the Rio Aripuanã River in Mato Grosso, Brazil, where this knifefish occurs
Gymnotus bahianus Campos-da-Paz & Costa 1996 –anus, belonging to: Bahia State, Brazil, where it is endemic
Gymnotus capanema Milhomem, Crampton, Pierczeka, Shetka, Silva & Nagamachi 2012 named for the municipality of Capanema, Pará, Brazil, type locality
Gymnotus capitimaculatus Rangel-Pereira 2014 capitis, head; maculatus, blotchy, referring to a pair of blotches on ventral portion of head
Gymnotus carapo carapo Linnaeus 1758 local Brazilian name for knifefishes
Gymnotus carapo australis Craig, Crampton & Albert 2017 southern, known from southern humid neotropics of Uruguay and Argentina, the most southernly subspecies
Gymnotus carapo caatingaensis Craig, Crampton & Albert 2017 –ensis, suffix denoting place: Caatinga ecoregion of northeastern Brazil, where it occurs
Gymnotus carapo madeirensis Craig, Crampton & Albert 2017 –ensis, suffix denoting place: Río Madeira basin, Bolivia, where it occurs (also occurs in Peru)
Gymnotus carapo occidentalis Craig, Crampton & Albert 2017 western, known from western Amazon basin of Peru (and elsewhere), the most westernly subspecies
Gymnotus carapo orientalis Craig, Crampton & Albert 2017 eastern, known from eastern Amazon basin of Brazil (and elsewhere, but not the most easternly subspecies, which is G. c. caatingaensis)
Gymnotus carapo septentrionalis Craig, Crampton & Albert 2017 northern, known from Orinoco basin (Colombia, Venezuela) and Trinidad, the most northernly subspecies
Gymnotus cataniapo Mago-Leccia 1994 named for the Río Cataniapo (Amazonas, Venezuela), which provided the largest number of specimens
Gymnotus chaviro Maxime & Albert 2009 common name for Gymnotus among the Asheninka indigenous people of Peru, where it occurs
Gymnotus chimarrao Cognato, Richer-de-Forges, Albert & Crampton 2008 named for chimarrão, the traditional mate tea (Ilex paraguariensis) of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil (where this gymnotid occurs), referring to olive-green ground coloration, similar to the color of dried tea leaves (see G. cuia and Brachyhypopomus bombilla [Hypopomidae] for other mate-related knifefish names)
Gymnotus choco Albert, Crampton & Maldonado-Ocampo 2003 named for the Chocó region of the Pacific slope of Colombia, where it occurs
Gymnotus coatesi La Monte 1935 in honor of Christopher W. Coates (1899-1974), Curator (later Director), New York Aquarium, and student of electric fishes, who provided type (note: Coates was also the first to use captive electric eels to power light bulbs, a staple exhibit an public aquaria worldwide)
Gymnotus coropinae Hoedeman 1962 of Coropina Creek, Suriname, type locality
Gymnotus cuia Craig, Malabarba, Crampton & Albert 2018 named for the cuia gourd used to drink traditional mate popular through this fish’s range, referring to its especially deep body and head (and continuing a tradition of mate-related names in gymnotiform taxonomy; see G. chimarrao and Brachyhypopomus bombilla [Hypopomidae])
Gymnotus curupira Crampton, Thorsen & Albert 2005 named for Igarapé Curupira, a forest stream near Tefé, Amazonas, Brazil, type locality (the Curupira is a mythical spirit of the Amazon rain forest)
Gymnotus cylindricus La Monte 1935 referring to its cylindrical body
Gymnotus darwini Campos-da-Paz & de Santana 2019 in honor of English naturalist Charles Darwin (1809-1882), “well known from his extensive and genial contribution to the study of evolution through natural selection,” and because holotype and a number of paratypes were collected at the Refúgio Ecológico Charles Darwin in Igarassu, Pernambuco, Brazil, where Darwin himself visited in August 1836 while aboard the H.M.S. Beagle
Gymnotus diamantinensis Campos-da-Paz 2002 –ensis, suffix denoting place: municipality of Diamantino, Mato Grosso, Brazil, type locality
Gymnotus esmeraldas Albert & Crampton 2003 named for the Río Esmeraldas drainage, Ecuador, type locality
Gymnotus eyra Craig, Correa-Roldán, Ortega, Crampton & Albert 2018 local (Peru) name for red form of the jaguarundi, Herpailurus yagouaroundi, continuing a convention of naming Gymnotus species after felids (onca, pantherinus, tigre) due to their shared nocturnal, predatory, banded or spotted attributes
Gymnotus henni Albert, Crampton & Maldonado-Ocampo 2003 in honor of Carl Eigenmann’s student (and successor) Arthur Wilbur Henn (1890-1959), a “pioneer” in neotropical ichthyology, who collected type in 1913
Gymnotus inaequilabiatus (Valenciennes 1839) inequalis, unequal or uneven; labiatus, lipped, referring to lower jaw projecting beyond the upper, with thick lips on the former and none on the latter
Gymnotus interruptus Rangel-Pereira 2012 interrupted, referring to pale interbands, anterior to vertical through first ventral lateral line ramus, ventrally and/or dorsally fragmented (=interrupted), allowing union of adjacent dark bands
Gymnotus javari Albert, Crampton & Hagedorn 2003 named for the Río Yavari (Rio Javarí), Loreto Department, Peru, type locality
Gymnotus jonasi Albert & Crampton 2001 in honor of naturalist Jonas Alves de Oliveira, Mamirauá Sustainable Development Reserve (Amazonas, Brazil), where it occurs
Gymnotus maculosus Albert & Miller 1995 spotted, referring to its “conspicuous” color pattern
Gymnotus mamiraua Albert & Crampton 2001 named for Mamirauá lake system and Mamirauá Sustainable Development Reserve (Amazonas, Brazil), type locality
Gymnotus melanopleura Albert & Crampton 2001 melano-, dark; pleura, rib or side, referring to dark bands along lateral body surface
Gymnotus obscurus Crampton, Thorsen & Albert 2005 dark, referring to its predominantly dark coloration
Gymnotus omarorum Richer-de-Forges, Crampton & Albert 2009 –orum, commemorative suffix, plural: in honor of Omar Macadar and Omar Trujillo-Cenoz (b. 1933), both pioneers in the anatomical and physiological study of electrogenesis in Gymnotus
Gymnotus onca Albert & Crampton 2001 named for the jaguar Panthera onca, referring to its characteristic color pattern of broad irregular dark pigment blotches
Gymnotus panamensis Albert & Crampton 2003 –ensis, suffix denoting place: Panama, where it is endemic
Gymnotus pantanal Fernandes, Albert, Daniel-Silva, Lopes, Crampton & Almeida-Toledo 2005 referring to the Pantanal Matogrossense of Brazil, the hydrological region of the type locality (also occurs in Paraguay and Bolivia)
Gymnotus pantherinus (Steindachner 1908) leopard-like, presumably referring to irregularly shaped spots and dots that are sometimes connected in a zigzag and “halfbow-like” manner (translation)
Gymnotus paraguensis Albert & Crampton 2003 –ensis, suffix denoting place: Paraguay River basin, Brazil and Paraguay, where it is endemic
Gymnotus pedanopterus Mago-Leccia 1994 pedanos, short; pterus, fin, referring to shortness of anal-fin rays
Gymnotus refugio Giora & Malabarba 2016 Portuguese for sanctuary, referring to its abundance only in two conservation areas of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil: Refúgio da Vida Silvestre Banhado dos Pachecos, and Parque Estadual de Itapeva
Gymnotus riberalta Craig, Correa-Roldán, Ortega, Crampton & Albert 2018 named for Riberalta, Beni Department, Bolivia, type locality
Gymnotus stenoleucus Mago-Leccia 1994 stenos, narrow; leukos, white, referring to narrow pale bands on anterior third of body
Gymnotus sylvius Albert & Fernandes-Matioli 1999 –ius, pertaining to: Silvio de Almeida Toledo Filho, a “pioneer” in the electrobiology of Gymnotus from southeastern Brazil; also alludes to the Latin sylvi, forest, referring to the Atlantic rainforest where this species dwells
Gymnotus tigre Albert & Crampton 2003 Portuguese for tiger, based in its common name in the local aquarium trade, referring to its tiger-like markings
Gymnotus tiquie Maxime, Lima & Albert 2011 named for the Rio Tiquié, upper Rio Negro basin, Brazil, where this species is known only from small tributaries
Gymnotus ucamara Crampton, Lovejoy & Albert 2003 named for the Ucamara Depression, a geological term for the low-lying region between the lower reaches of the Ucayali and Marañon rivers of Peru (where it occurs), caused by subsidence in the Upper Amazon foreland basin
Gymnotus varzea Crampton, Thorsen & Albert 2005 named for the várzea (freshwater swamp forest) floodplains near Tefé, Amazonas, Brazil, where it occurs
Family RHAMPHICHTHYIDAE Sand Knifefishes
5 genera • 26 species
Gymnorhamphichthys Ellis 1912 gymnos, bare or naked, i.e., “much the same as” Rhamphichthys except scaleless on anterior portion of body
Gymnorhamphichthys bogardusi Lundberg 2005 in honor of Joan Bogardus Spears (1939-2002), “a descendant of the earliest Dutch settlers in New York, whose avid interests in life’s diversity on Earth taught and inspired her children to support its scientific discovery and documentation” (Spears’ daughter Dorothy provided “generous support” of Lundberg’s work) [preferably spelled bogardusae since name honors a woman, but ICZN 32.5.1 forbids such a correction]
Gymnorhamphichthys britskii Carvalho, Ramos & Albert 2011 in honor of Heraldo A. Britski (Universidade de São Paulo), for his many contributions to our understanding of neotropical fishes, and his “paramount” work on the fishes of the Paraguay basin
Gymnorhamphichthys hypostomus Ellis 1912 hypo-, under; stomus, mouth, referring small mouth, “somewhat under the upper jaw”
Gymnorhamphichthys rondoni (Miranda Ribeiro 1920) in honor of Cândido Rondon (1865-1958), Brazilian army engineer and explorer, whose Rondon Commission to install telegraph poles from Mato Grosso to Amazonas included expedition that collected type
Gymnorhamphichthys rosamariae Schwassmann 1989 of Rosa María, Amazonas, Brazil, type locality
Hypopygus Hoedeman 1962 a combination of the generic names Hypopomus and Parupygus (Hypopomidae, now considered congeneric), putatively related to both at time of description
Hypopygus benoneae Peixoto, Dutra, de Santana & Wosiacki 2013 in honor of Naraiana Benone, Universidade Federal do Pará, who collected most of the type series
Hypopygus cryptogenes (Triques 1997) cryptos, hidden; genesis, generation, referring to its “obscure origins and phyletic relationships” (Triques believed the species shared characters with Hypopygus and Steatogenys, but did not feel confident placing it in either; therefore he proposed a new genus, Stegostenopos, now a synonym)
Hypopygus hoedemani de Santana & Crampton 2011 in honor of Dutch ichthyologist Jacobus Johannes Hoedeman (1917-1982), for his contributions to neotropical ichthyology, including description of H. lepturus, type species of genus
Hypopygus isbruckeri de Santana & Crampton 2011 in honor of Isaäc J. H. Isbrücker (b. 1944), Zoölogisch Museum, Amsterdam, for contributions to neotropical ichthyology, including Hypopygus [sometimes spelled “isbrueckeri” but ICZN Art. 32.5.1-2 does not apply]
Hypopygus lepturus Hoedeman 1962 leptos, thin; oura, tail, referring to slender, pointed tail beyond anal fin
Hypopygus minissimus de Santana & Crampton 2011 smallest, the smallest known gymnotiform (up to 64.0 mm TL)
Hypopygus neblinae Mago-Leccia 1994 of La Neblina National Park (Amazonas, Venezuela), where Mago-Leccia first spotted the differences between it and H. lepturus
Hypopygus nijsseni de Santana & Crampton 2011 in honor of Han Nijssen (1935-2013), Zoölogisch Museum, Amsterdam, for contributions to neotropical ichthyology
Hypopygus ortegai de Santana & Crampton 2011 in honor of Peruvian ichthyologist Hernán Ortega Torres, for his many contributions to neotropical ichthyology and his participation in the expedition that discovered this species
Hypopygus varii Campos-da-Paz 2018 in honor of Richard P. Vari (1949-2016), Smithsonian Institution, who “greatly” contributed to the knowledge of neotropical characiphysan fishes, and also produced a number of papers on gymnotiform taxonomy and systematics, for his “work, enthusiasm and encouragement to many ichthyologists”
Iracema Triques 1996 name of a “literary beautiful female native” from an eponymous 1865 Brazilian novel and a female personal name in Brazil, allusion not explained nor evident
Iracema caiana Triques 1996 Tupí word for cane, referring to its elongate form
Rhamphichthys Müller & Troschel 1846 rhamphos, beak, referring to snout produced into a tube; ichthys, fish [originally spelled Ramphichthys, probably an error, then corrected to Rhamphichthys when the authors republished their description in 1849]
Rhamphichthys apurensis (Fernández-Yépez 1968) –ensis, suffix denoting place: Río Apure, Orinoco basin, Apure, Venezuela, type locality
Rhamphichthys drepanium Triques 1999 diminutive of drepanon, i.e., a little sickle, referring to pattern of upper part of oblique transversal bars on body
Rhamphichthys hahni (Meinken 1937) in honor of friend and “fish connoisseur” Carlos Hahn (Corrientes, Argentina), for “many stimulating observations [via mail] on numerous fishes, from outdoors and aquaria” (translation)
Rhamphichthys heleios Carvalho & Albert 2015 Greek for “dwelling in the marsh,” referring to floodplain habitat where it has been collected
Rhamphichthys lineatus Castelnau 1855 lined, referring to distinct longitudinal line on sides
Rhamphichthys pantherinus Castelnau 1855 Latin for panther-like, referring to numerous dark-brown spots on head and back
Rhamphichthys rostratus (Linnaeus 1766) beaked, referring to snout produced into a tube
Steatogenys Boulenger 1898 steatos, fat; genys, cheek, referring to filament of adipose tissue in a groove along each side of mental region of S. elegans
Steatogenys duidae (La Monte 1929) of Mt. Duida, Venezuela, type locality (also occurs in Brazil)
Steatogenys elegans (Steindachner 1880) elegant, fine or select, allusion not explained, probably referring to attractive barred color pattern
Steatogenys ocellatus Crampton, Thorsen & Albert 2004 having little eyes, referring to diagnostic eye-like markings at pectoral-fin base
Family HYPOPOMIDAE Bluntnose Knifefishes
7 genera/subgenera • 36 species
Akawaio Maldonado-Ocampo, López-Fernández, Taphorn, Bernard, Crampton & Lovejoy 2013 named in honor of the Akawaio Amerindians who populate the region of the upper Mazaruni River, Guyana (where the only species is endemic), for their valuable help while studying the fishes of their lands
Akawaio penak Maldonado-Ocampo, López-Fernández, Taphorn, Bernard, Crampton & Lovejoy 2013 Akawaio word that is “apparently used unambiguously for this species”
Brachyhypopomus Mago-Leccia 1994 brachys, short, i.e., similar and/or related to Hypopomus but distinguished by their short snouts
Subgenus Brachyhypopomus
Brachyhypopomus alberti Crampton, de Santana, Waddell & Lovejoy 2017 in honor of James S. Albert (b. 1964), University of Louisiana at Lafayette, collector of part of the type series, for his “enormous” contributions to the systematic biology of gymnotiform fishes
Brachyhypopomus arrayae Crampton, de Santana, Waddell & Lovejoy 2017 in honor of biologist Mariana Arraya, for her assistance in collecting the type series in Bolivia
Brachyhypopomus batesi Crampton, de Santana, Waddell & Lovejoy 2017 in honor of Henry Walter Bates (1825-1892), British naturalist and explorer, for his contributions to the natural history of the Tefé region of Brazil, type locality (also occurs in Colombia)
Brachyhypopomus beebei (Schultz 1944) in honor of naturalist and explorer William Beebe (1877-1962), New York Zoological Society, who collected type and “kindly” loaned the specimens to Schultz
Brachyhypopomus belindae Crampton, de Santana, Waddell & Lovejoy 2017 in honor of evolutionary biologist Belinda Siew-Woon Chang, University of Toronto (Canada), for her “inspiration to [the fourth author] during the preparation of this work”
Brachyhypopomus benjamini Crampton, de Santana, Waddell & Lovejoy 2017 in honor of Benjamin T. D. Crampton (b. 1972), British diplomat and amateur ornithologist, who collected type
Brachyhypopomus bombilla Loureiro & Silva 2006 local name for metal straw used to drink mate, a popular herbal infusion in the Río de la Plata region of Uruguay, whose shape resembles the shape of this knifefish; in memory of friend and colleague Pablo Errandonea (1973-2000), who coined the name (see Gymnotus chimarrao and G. cuia [Gymnotidae] for other mate-related knifefish names)
Brachyhypopomus brevirostris (Steindachner 1868) brevis, short; rostris, snout, referring to its “greatly blunted muzzle” (translation), less than ⅓ length of head
Brachyhypopomus bullocki Sullivan & Hopkins 2009 is honor of Theodore Holmes Bullock (1915-2005), a pioneer of the comparative neurobiology of both invertebrates and vertebrates; he is credited with the first physiological recordings from an electroreceptor and for championing electric fishes as a model system in neurobiology
Brachyhypopomus cunia Crampton, de Santana, Waddell & Lovejoy 2017 named for the type locality, lago Cuniã, a floodplain lake of the lower rio Madeira inside the Reserva Extrativista do lago do Cuniã, Rondônia, Brazil
Brachyhypopomus degy Dutra, Peixoto, Ochoa, Ohara, de Santana, Menezes & Datovo 2021 acronym for Diversity and Evolution of Gymnotiformes, a project that supported the authors’ research and is funded by a cooperation agreement between the Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (Brazil) and the Smithsonian Institution (USA)
Brachyhypopomus diazae (Fernández-Yépez 1972) in honor of Fernández-Yépez’ secretary, María Isabel (Betty) Diaz [note incorrect gender]
Brachyhypopomus draco Giora, Malabarba & Crampton 2008 dragon, referring to shape of distal portion of caudal filament in mature males, similar to that illustrated in these imaginary creatures
Brachyhypopomus flavipomus Crampton, de Santana, Waddell & Lovejoy 2017 flavus, yellow; poma, lid or cover, referring to conspicuous patches of yellow guanine on operculum of live individuals
Brachyhypopomus gauderio Giora & Malabarba 2009 synonym for gaúcho, a person who lives in the countryside (Pampas) of Rio Grande do Sul, southern Brazil, Uruguay and Argentina, referring to geographic distribution of this species
Brachyhypopomus hamiltoni Crampton, de Santana, Waddell & Lovejoy 2017 in honor of William D. Hamilton (1936-2000), British evolutionary biologist and doctoral advisor of the first author, for his contributions to Amazonian ecology
Brachyhypopomus hendersoni Crampton, de Santana, Waddell & Lovejoy 2017 in honor of Peter A. Henderson (b. 1954), British fish biologist, and doctoral co-advisor of the first author, for his contributions to Amazonian aquatic ecology
Brachyhypopomus janeiroensis (Costa & Campos-da-Paz 1992) –ensis, suffix denoting place: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, where it occurs
Brachyhypopomus jureiae Triques & Khamis 2003 of the Juréia Ecological Station, São Paulo, Brazil, type locality
Brachyhypopomus menezesi Crampton, de Santana, Waddell & Lovejoy 2017 in honor of Brazilian ichthyologist Naércio Aquino Menezes (b. 1937), Museu de Zoologia, Universidade de São Paulo (Brazil), for his important contributions to neotropical fish systematics
Brachyhypopomus occidentalis (Regan 1914) western, presumably referring to type locality in Pacific slope of Colombia (also occurs in Costa Rica, Ecuador, Panama and Suriname)
Brachyhypopomus palenque Crampton, de Santana, Waddell & Lovejoy 2017 named for the río Palenque, a Pacific Ocean drainage of Ecuador, type locality
Brachyhypopomus pinnicaudatus (Hopkins 1991) pinni-, feather or fin; caudatus, tailed, referring to “feather-like” appearance of caudal-fin filament in males
Brachyhypopomus provenzanoi Crampton, de Santana, Waddell & Lovejoy 2017 in honor of ichthyologist Francisco Provenzano Rizzi (Instituto de Zoología Tropical de la Universidad Central de Venezuela), for his contributions to neotropical ichthyology
Brachyhypopomus regani Crampton, de Santana, Waddell & Lovejoy 2017 in honor of ichthyologist Charles Tate Regan (1878-1943), Natural History Museum (London), for his contributions to neotropical ichthyology
Brachyhypopomus sullivani Crampton, de Santana, Waddell & Lovejoy 2017 in honor of ichthyologist John P. Sullivan (b. 1965), Cornell University, for his contributions to gymnotiform biology
Brachyhypopomus verdii Crampton, de Santana, Waddell & Lovejoy 2017 in honor of Peruvian conservation biologist Lorgio Verdi Olivares, for his support to the first and fourth authors
Subgenus Odontohypopomus Sullivan, Zuanon & Cox Fernandes 2013 odontos, tooth, referring to small teeth on premaxillae; Hypopomus, type genus of subfamily
Brachyhypopomus bennetti Sullivan, Zuanon & Cox Fernandes 2013 in honor of Michael V. L. Bennett (b. 1931), Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University (Bronx, New York, USA), for his “pioneering” work on electric-fish neurophysiology; Bennett (1961, 1971) reported studying a knifefish with a monophasic EOD (electric organ discharge) likely to have been this species
Brachyhypopomus walteri Sullivan, Zuanon & Cox Fernandes 2013 in honor of Walter Heiligenberg (1938-1994), for his discoveries in electric-fish neurophysiology and behavior made at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, most notably the “jamming avoidance response” in Eigenmannia, often described as the best-understood vertebrate behavior
Hypopomus Gill 1864 etymology not explained and no description given, presumably, hypo– under or less than; pomus, covering or operculum, perhaps referring to anus situated under gill opening
Hypopomus artedi (Kaup 1856) patronym not identified, probably in honor of Swedish naturalist Peter Artedi (1705-1735), known as the “father of ichthyology”
Microsternarchus Fernández-Yépez 1968 micro-, small, presumably referring to size of M. bilineatus (up to 82.8 mm TL); sternarchus, a common suffix in knifefish taxonomy, historically used for the putative subfamily Sternarchinae, based on Sternarchus Bloch & Schneider 1801 (=Apteronotus), sterno-, breast; archus, anus, referring to placement of anal opening near breast
Microsternarchus bilineatus Fernández-Yépez 1968 bi-, two; lineatus, lined, referring to double dotted line (almost imperceptible) running along dorsal surface
Microsternarchus brevis Cox Fernandes, Nogueira, Williston & Alves-Gomes 2015 short, referring to overall size (up to 53.2 mm TL) and shorter caudal-fin filament compared to M. bilineatus
Microsternarchus longicaudatus Sousa, Wosiacki, Muriel-Cunha, Prudente, Sousa & Peixoto 2024 longus, long; caudatus, tailed, referring to its elongated caudal filament (35.1–36.8% of TL), unique in the genus
Procerusternarchus Cox Fernandes, Nogueira & Alves-Gomes 2014 procerus, slender or long, referring to its elongate, slender body; sternarchus, a common suffix in knifefish taxonomy, historically used for the putative subfamily Sternarchinae, based on Sternarchus Bloch & Schneider 1801 (=Apteronotus), sterno-, breast; archus, anus, referring to placement of anal opening near breast
Procerusternarchus pixuna Cox Fernandes, Nogueira & Alves-Gomes 2014 Nheengatu (Amerindian language of the Tupí-Guaraní family) word meaning dark or black, presumably referring to “almost black” coloration on dorsal surface from snout to caudal filament on living specimens
Racenisia Mago-Leccia 1994 –ia, belonging to: entomologist Janis Racenis (1915-1980), founder, Institutio de Zoología Tropical, Universidad Central de Venezuela, where Mago-Leccia worked
Racenisia fimbriipinna Mago-Leccia 1994 fimbriae, fringe; pinna, fin, referring to how anal-fin rays are “covered by a thick tissue that gives an undulated shape to the fin in recently preserved specimens”
Family STERNOPYGIDAE Glass Knifefishes
7 genera • 60 species
Subfamily EIGENMANNIINAE
Archolaemus Korringa 1970 archos, anus; laimos, throat, referring to location of vent under eye
Archolaemus blax Korringa 1970 Latin for doltish, referring to its general appearance
Archolaemus ferreirai Vari, de Santana & Wosiacki 2012 in honor of Efrem Ferreira (b. 1954), Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia, one of the collectors of the type series, for his many contributions to our understanding of Amazonian fishes
Archolaemus janeae Vari, de Santana & Wosiacki 2012 in honor of Jane Mertens, Humboldt Universität zu Berlin, for her assistance to the second author
Archolaemus luciae Vari, de Santana & Wosiacki 2012 in honor of Lucia Rapp Py-Daniel, Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia, for her many contributions to the knowledge of Amazonian fishes and her assistance to the authors over the years
Archolaemus orientalis Stewart, Vari, de Santana & Wosiacki 2012 eastern, referring to its presence in the Rio São Francisco (Minas Gerais, Brazil), the easternmost known occurrence in the genus
Archolaemus santosi Vari, de Santana & Wosiacki 2012 in honor of Geraldo Mendes dos Santos, Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia, who collected type, for his many contributions to our knowledge of Amazonian fishes
Distocyclus Mago-Leccia 1978 disto-, different; cyclos, ring or circle, different from Eigenmannia in having a long and conical snout
Distocyclus conirostris (Eigenmann & Allen 1942) conus, cone; rostris, referring to conical head, or snout
Eigenmannia Jordan & Evermann 1896 –ia, belonging to: Carl H. Eigenmann (1863-1927), for his “excellent work” on the freshwater fishes of South America [replacement for Cryptops Eigenmann 1894, preoccupied by Cryptops Leach 1814 in Myriopoda, Cryptops Schoenherr 1823 and Cryptops Solier 1851 in Coleoptera]
Eigenmannia antonioi Peixoto, Dutra & Wosiacki 2015 in memory of Antônio da Silva Wanderley, grandfather of the first author
Eigenmannia besouro Peixoto & Wosiacki 2016 Portuguese for beetle, in honor of Manoel Henrique Pereira (1895-1924), known as Besouro Mangangá (The Mangangá Beetle), a native of the Recôncavo region of Bahia, Brazil (where this knifefish occurs), and a legendary figure in the Afro-Brazilian martial art capoeira [see also Hypostomus bimbai and H. pastinhai, Siluriformes: Loricariidae: Hypostominae]
Eigenmannia camposi Herrera-Collazos, Galindo-Cuervo, Maldonado-Ocampo & Rincón-Sandoval 2020 in honor of Ricardo Campos-da-Paz (Universidade de São Paulo), for contributions to our knowledge of gymnotiform fishes
Eigenmannia catira Cardoso & Dutra 2023 catira, a popular dance in Brazilian folklore performed by herdsmen and farmers in the areas of influence of the sertaneja culture in São Paulo and Mato Grosso do Sul states, Brazil, where this knifefish occurs
Eigenmannia correntes Campos-da-Paz & Queiroz 2017 named for the rio Correntes (main river of the rio Piquiri system, upper rio Paraguai basin, Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil), where all type specimens were collected
Eigenmannia desantanai Peixoto, Dutra & Wosiacki 2015 in honor of ichthyologist Carlos David de Santana, for his contributions to our knowledge of the Gymnotiformes
Eigenmannia dutrai Peixoto, Pastana & Ballen 2021 in honor of Guilherme M. Dutra, Universidade de São Paulo, for his contribution to ichthyology, in particular to the taxonomy of Eigenmannia
Eigenmannia guairaca Peixoto, Dutra & Wosiacki 2015 named for the legendary Guairacá, a brave Indian chief who protected the Guaraní people and their land
Eigenmannia guchereauae (Meunier, Jégu & Keith 2014) in honor of Corinne Guchereau, Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle (Paris), who facilitated the technical aspects of the authors’ work for 15 years
Eigenmannia humboldtii (Steindachner 1878) in honor of Prussian geographer-naturalist Alexander von Humboldt (1769-1859), one of the first ichthyol ogical explorers of the Río Magdalena, Colombia, type locality (also occurs in Brazil and Venezuela)
Eigenmannia limbata (Schreiner & Miranda Ribeiro 1903) bordered, referring to white anal fin bordered in black
Eigenmannia loretana Waltz & Albert 2018 –ana, belonging to: in honor of the residents and inhabitants of Loreto, Peru, type locality
Eigenmannia macrops (Boulenger 1897) macro-, large; ops, eye, referring to “much larger” eye compared to congeners in Sternopygus, genus at time of description
Eigenmannia macuxi Dutra, Peixoto, Donin, de Santana & Menezes 2024 named for the Macuxi indigenous people whose home territory is near the type locality in Roraima, Brazil
Eigenmannia magoi Herrera-Collazos, Galindo-Cuervo, Maldonado-Ocampo & Rincón-Sandoval 2020 in honor of Francisco Mago Leccia (1931-2004), for his contributions to our knowledge of gymnotiform fishes
Eigenmannia matintapereira Peixoto, Dutra & Wosiacki 2015 named for Matinta Pereira, a mythical figure that haunts people in search of tobacco and coffee in northern Brazil; according to reports, its appearance is marked by a blackened aspect, alluding to color pattern of this species
Eigenmannia meeki Dutra, de Santana & Wosiacki 2017 in honor of ichthyologist Seth Eugene Meek (1859-1914), who made many contributions to the knowledge of the diversity of the fishes of Panama (where this knifefish occurs)
Eigenmannia microstoma (Reinhardt 1852) micro-, small; stoma, mouth, referring to its “extremely small” mouth (translation)
Eigenmannia muirapinima Peixoto, Dutra & Wosiacki 2015 named for the indigenous people of the tribe Muirapinima, who inhabit region near type locality in Pará, Brazil
Eigenmannia nigra Mago-Leccia 1994 black, referring to its “peculiar black phase coloration”
Eigenmannia oradens Dutra, Peixoto, de Santana & Wosiacki 2018 ora, edge; dens, teeth, referring to bony dorsolateral flange on dentary in which teeth are attached
Eigenmannia pavulagem Peixoto, Dutra & Wosiacki 2015 named for Arraial do Pavulagem, a cultural movement created in Pará, Brazil, characterized by music of a unique traditional style that originated in Amazon region
Eigenmannia sayona Peixoto & Waltz 2017 referring to La Sayona, a spirit of philanderous vengeance in Venezuelan lore (knifefish occurs in the río Orinoco basin, Venezuela); name is intended as an homage to the Venezuelan people with no meaning or significance to the fish itself (Luiz Peixoto, pers. comm.)
Eigenmannia sirius Peixoto & Ohara 2019 Sirius, brightest star in night sky (Canis Major constellation), representing state of Mato Grosso (where this species is probably endemic) in Brazilian national flag
Eigenmannia trilineata López & Castello 1966 tri-, three; lineata, lined, referring to three dark horizontal stripes, one across middle of body, one along bottom, and one along base of anal fin
Eigenmannia vicentespelaea Triques 1996 spelaeum, cave; vicente, referring to Cave São Vicentie II, Tocantins River basin, Goiás, Brazil, only known area of occurrence
Eigenmannia virescens (Valenciennes 1836) viridis, green; –escens, becoming, i.e., greenish, name dates to a plate, allusion not explained in subsequent written description (1847) but likely referring to green-tinted transparent body in life
Eigenmannia waiwai Peixoto, Dutra & Wosiacki 2015 named for the Waiwai, indigenous people whose home territory is near type locality in Pará, Brazil
Eigenmannia zenuensis Herrera-Collazos, Galindo-Cuervo, Maldonado-Ocampo & Rincón-Sandoval 2020 –ensis, suffix denoting place but in this case in honor of the Amerindian Colombian tribe Zenú, who historically occurred throughout the San Jorge River basin of Colombia, where this knifefish occurs
Japigny Meunier, Jégu & Keith 2011 named for Japigny, a tributary of Approuague River, French Guiana, where J. kirschbaum was first found
Japigny kirschbaum Meunier, Jégu & Keith 2011 in honor of Frank Kirschbaum, Humboldt University of Berlin, a specialist in gymnotiform fishes who has spawned and bred several species in the laboratory [a noun in apposition, without the patronymic “i”]
Rhabdolichops Eigenmann & Allen 1942 rhabdos, rod, stick or staff; lichanos, forefinger; ops, appearance or aspect of, allusion not explained, perhaps referring to “enormously exaggerated” tails on some specimens of R. longicaudatus (=R. troscheli), which, on one specimen, exceeded length of body
Rhabdolichops caviceps (Fernández-Yépez 1968) cavus, cavity; ceps, head, referring to a series of cavities around the eyes
Rhabdolichops eastwardi Lundberg & Mago-Leccia 1986 of the research vessel Eastward, formerly of the Duke University Oceanographic Program, the ship that supported two productive ichthyological expeditions to the lower Orinoco of Venezuela, where this knifefish occurs
Rhabdolichops electrogrammus Lundberg & Mago-Leccia 1986 electro-, electric; gramme, line, referring to narrow transparent electric organ on tail base and above posterior part of anal fin
Rhabdolichops jegui Keith & Meunier 2000 in honor of ichthyologist Michael Jégu, ORSTOM (Office de la Recherche Scientifique et Technique d’Outre-Mer), specialist in serrasalmid fishes, who collected type
Rhabdolichops lundbergi Correa, Crampton & Albert 2006 in honor of John G. Lundberg (b. 1942), Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, for his contributions to the study of gymnotiform and other neotropical fishes
Rhabdolichops navalha Correa, Crampton & Albert 2006 Portuguese word for razor, referring to its highly laterally compressed body
Rhabdolichops nigrimans Correa, Crampton & Albert 2006 nigrum, black; manus, hand, referring to diagnostic black pectoral fin
Rhabdolichops stewarti Lundberg & Mago-Leccia 1986 in honor of friend and colleague Donald J. Stewart (b. 1946), Museum of Zoology, University of Michigan, who brought this knifefish to the authors’ attention
Rhabdolichops troscheli (Kaup 1856) in honor of zoologist Franz Hermann Troschel (1810-1882), who, with Johann Müller, recognized this knifefish as Sternopygus (now Eigenmannia) virescens in 1849
Rhabdolichops zareti Lundberg & Mago-Leccia 1986 in honor of the late Thomas M. Zaret (1945-1984), the authors’ “close friend, who contributed much to our knowledge of Rhabdolichops, planktivorous fishes and fish ecology”
Rhinosternarchus Dutra, Peixoto, Abrahão, Wosiacki, Menezes & de Santana 2021 rhinos, nose, referring to its elongated snout; sternarchus, a common suffix in knifefish taxonomy, historically used for the putative subfamily Sternarchinae, based on Sternarchus Bloch & Schneider 1801 (=Apteronotus), sterno-, breast; archus, anus, referring to placement of anal opening near breast
Rhinosternarchus goajira (Schultz 1949) referring to area inhabited by the Goajira Indians in Venezuela, where type was collected (also occurs in Colombia)
Subfamily STERNOPYGINAE
Sternopygus Müller & Troschel 1846 sterno-, breast; pygus, rump or buttock, allusion not explained, perhaps referring to placement of anal opening near breast
Sternopygus aequilabiatus (Humboldt 1805) aequalitas, equal; labiatus, lipped, referring to how lower jaw does not project beyond upper jaw as in Gymnotus carapo, its presumed congener at the time
Sternopygus arenatus (Eydoux & Souleyet 1850) sanded, referring to its brown-yellow coloration, “very finely dotted with black” (translation)
Sternopygus astrabes Mago-Leccia 1994 Greek for saddle, referring to 2-4 black, wide and saddle-like vertical bands on body
Sternopygus branco Crampton, Hulen & Albert 2004 Portuguese for white, referring to characteristic pale color of freshly netted live specimens
Sternopygus dariensis Meek & Hildebrand 1916 –ensis, suffix denoting place: Darién, Atlantic slope of Panama, where type locality (Río Tuyra at Marriganti) is situated
Sternopygus macrurus (Bloch & Schneider 1801) macro-, long; oura, tail, referring to its long (but finless) tail
Sternopygus obtusirostris Steindachner 1881 obtusus, blunt; rostris, snout, referring to its shorter, more rounded snout compared to Gymnotus carapo, its presumed congener at the time
Sternopygus pejeraton Schultz 1949 latinization of peje ratón (mouse fish), its local name in the Lake Maracaibo region of Venezuela, probably referring to its mouse- or rat-like tail
Sternopygus sabaji Torgersen & Albert 2022 in honor of American ichthyologist Mark Henry Sabaj (b. 1969), Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, for his “many contributions to the exploration and understanding of Neotropical aquatic diversity,” and his “role in collecting and photographing the specimens of the type series and his help to the authors in obtaining specimen loans for this study”
Sternopygus sarae Torgersen, Galindo-Cuervo, Reis & Albert 2023 in honor of Sara Holmberg Albert, the last author’s wife, for her “perennial support”
Sternopygus xingu Albert & Fink 1996 named for the Río Xingú basin, Mato Grosso, Brazil, type locality
Family APTERONOTIDAE Ghost Knifefishes
16 genera • 100 species
Subfamily APTERONOTINAE
Adontosternarchus Ellis 1912 a-, without and odonto-, tooth, referring to absence of teeth from both jaws; sternarchus, referring to then-placement in the subfamily Sternarchinae
Adontosternarchus balaenops (Cope 1878) balaena, whale; ops, appearance, referring to lower jaw projecting beyond upper jaw, “enclosing the latter somewhat as in a whalebone [or baleen] whale”
Adontosternarchus clarkae Mago-Leccia, Lundberg & Baskin 1985 in honor of Kate Clark, who ran a research station in Venezuela with her husband, and who collected type
Adontosternarchus devenanzii Mago-Leccia, Lundberg & Baskin 1985 in honor of Francisco De Venanzi (1917-1987), first Rector of the Universidad Central de Venezuela (Caracas), who encouraged the first author to study fishes
Adontosternarchus duartei de Santana & Vari 2012 in honor of Cleber Duarte, Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia, who collected most of the specimens that served as the basis for its description
Adontosternarchus nebulosus Lundberg & Cox Fernandes 2007 clouded, referring to bold color pattern of dark irregular blotches
Adontosternarchus sachsi (Peters 1877) in honor of physician and electric-fish researcher Carl Sachs (1853-1878), who collected type
Apteronotus Lacepède 1800 a-, without; pterus, fin; notus, back, referring to absence of dorsal fin (a trait common to all knifefishes, however, apteronotids do possess a “dorsal organ,” a longitudinal strip of fleshy tissue firmly attached to posterodorsal midline)
Apteronotus acidops Triques 2011 akidos, point; ops, face, referring to its very elongated and pointed head morphology
Apteronotus albertoi Peixoto, Dutra, Datovo, Menezes & de Santana 2021 in honor of Alberto Carvalho, manager of the Laboratório Multiusuário de Processamento de Imagens de Microtomografia Computadorizada de Alta Resolução do Museu de Zoologia da Universidade de São Paulo (MZUSP), for his “kind support” in generating μCT scan images for MZUSP researchers, especially for the project ‘‘Diversity and Evolution of the Gymnotiformes”
Apteronotus albifrons (Linnaeus 1766) albis, white; frons, forehead, referring to whitish band extending from tip of snout to occiput
Apteronotus anu de Santana & Vari 2013 named for the Añu indigenous people who lived along the shores of Lake Maracaibo, Venezuela, in traditional houses termed Palafitos, which they built above the lake; such housing reminded early European explorers of Venice, Italy, and may have been the basis for the application of the name Venezuela to the region
Apteronotus apurensis Fernández-Yépez 1968 –ensis, suffix denoting place: Apure River basin, Venezuela, type locality (also where it is endemic)
Apteronotus baniwa de Santana & Vari 2013 name of the indigenous people whose home territory encompasses type locality, Río Orinoco basin, Venezuela
Apteronotus bonapartii (Castelnau 1855) in honor of biologist Charles Lucien Bonaparte (1803-1857), 2nd Prince of Canino and Musignano, “who even if he was not a member of the imperial house, is still one of the princes of science” (translation)
Apteronotus brasiliensis (Reinhardt 1852) –ensis, suffix denoting place: Brazil, where Rio das Velhas (type locality) is situated (also occurs in Argentina)
Apteronotus camposdapazi de Santana & Lehmann A. 2006 in honor of Ricardo Campos-da-Paz (Universidade de São Paulo), for contributions to the knowledge of gymnotiform fishes, and for discovering this species
Apteronotus caudimaculosus de Santana 2003 caudi-, tail; maculosus, spotted, referring to irregular dark spots on first of two bands that circle caudal peduncle
Apteronotus cuchillejo (Schultz 1949) Spanish for a small knife, the common name for this small, knife-shaped fish in Venezuela
Apteronotus cuchillo Schultz 1949 Spanish for knife, a common name for gymnotiform fishes in Venezuela, referring to their knife-like shape
Apteronotus ellisi (Alonso de Arámburu 1957) in honor of zoologist Max Mapes Ellis (1887-1953), Indiana University, for his 1913 monograph on knifefishes
Apteronotus eschmeyeri de Santana, Maldonado-Ocampo, Severi & Mendes 2004 in honor of William N. Eschmeyer (b. 1939), California Academy of Sciences, who greatly contributed to ichthyology with his “Catalog of Fishes”
Apteronotus ferrarisi de Santana & Vari 2013 in honor of Carl J. Ferraris, Jr. (b. 1950), for his many contributions to our knowledge of tropical freshwater fishes worldwide and his “invaluable” assistance to the authors, particularly the second author, over the years
Apteronotus galvisi de Santana, Maldonado-Ocampo & Crampton 2007 in honor of Germán Galvis Vergara (Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Sede Bogotá), for his “vast” contributions to our knowledge of the freshwater fishes of Colombia
Apteronotus jurubidae (Fowler 1944) of Río Jurubidá, Nuquí, Pacific Slope, Colombia, type locality
Apteronotus leptorhynchus (Ellis 1912) leptos, narrow; rhynchos, snout, referring to “rather long” pointed snout
Apteronotus lindalvae de Santana & Cox Fernandes 2012 in honor of Lindalva Sales da Costa Serrão, who has been contributing to the organization of INPA’s (Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia) fish collection for more than 20 years
Apteronotus macrolepis (Steindachner 1881) macro-, large, lepis, scale, referring to large scales on upper sides of body
Apteronotus macrostomus (Fowler 1943) macro-, long; stomus, mouth, which extends beyond eye and is half the length of the head
Apteronotus magdalenensis (Miles 1945) –ensis, suffix denoting place: Río Magdalena, Honda, Tolima, Colombia, type locality
Apteronotus magoi de Santana, Castillo & Taphorn 2006 in honor of the late Francisco Mago Leccia (1931-2004), for his “enormous” contributions to our knowledge of gymnotiform fishes, and for having recognized this species as undescribed
Apteronotus mariae (Eigenmann & Fisher 1914) in honor of Hermano Apolinar Maria (1867-1949), Director, Museum at the Instituto de La Salle, Bogotá, who provided Eigenmann with “valuable collections” of fishes from the Meta River basin of Colombia
Apteronotus milesi de Santana & Maldonado-Ocampo 2005 in honor of Cecil (spelled Celis by the authors) Miles, Secretary of the Dorada Railway (and an ichthyologist), Mariqueta, Tolima Department, Colombia, who “greatly” contributed to the knowledge of fishes from the Magdalena- Cauca hydrographic region of Colombia
Apteronotus paranaensis (Schindler 1940) –ensis, suffix denoting place: Paraná River Basin, Brazil, where it is endemic
Apteronotus pemon de Santana & Vari 2013 named for the Pemon indigenous group, whose traditional lands included much of the Río Caroni basin, Venezuela, type locality
Apteronotus quilombola Peixoto, Datovo, Menezes & Santana 2021 named for the quilombolas, Afro-Brazilian residents of the quilombos, which are Brazilian hinterland settlements first established by escaped enslaved Africans; in the Rio Trombetas, over 145 quilombolas families live near the Cachoeira Porteira waterfalls (Pará, Brazil), one of two places where this knifefish is known to occur
Apteronotus rostratus (Meek & Hildebrand 1913) beaked, allusion not explained, presumably referring to its blunt, very slightly compressed snout
Apteronotus spurrellii (Regan 1914) in honor of British zoologist Henry George Flaxman Spurrell (1882-1919), who collected type
Compsaraia Albert 2001 from the Greek kompsos, neat or elegant; raia, ray, referring to elegant appearance of long anal fin
Compsaraia iara Bernt & Albert 2017 named for the Iara, a water nymph from Tupí-Brazilian folklore said to reside in the rivers of the Brazilian Amazon and often blamed for the disappearance of fishermen
Compsaraia compsus (Mago-Leccia 1994) from the Greek kompsos, elegant or beautiful, referring to its elongate body
Compsaraia samueli Albert & Crampton 2009 in honor of the senior author’s father, Samuel Albert, who accompanied his son on an electric-fish collecting trip to Peru, and purchased type specimens from a fish market near Iquitos when he recognized that they differed from all the other electric fishes they had been collecting by the prominent elongate jaws of mature males (James S. Albert, pers. comm.)
Megadontognathus Mago-Leccia 1994 mega-, large; odontos, tooth; gnathos, mandible, referring to 2-3 big, recurved teeth on posterior half of dentary bone
Megadontognathus cuyuniensis Mago-Leccia 1994 –ensis, suffix denoting place: Río Cuyuni at Paruruvaca rapids, Bolivar, Venezuela, type locality
Megadontognathus kaitukaensis Campos-da-Paz 1999 –ensis, suffix denoting place: Cachoeiras (rapids) de Kaituká, Rio Xingu drainage, Pará, Brazil, type locality
Melanosternarchus Bernt, Crampton, Orfinger & Albert 2018 melanos, black, referring to its dark pigmentation and occurrence in blackwater rivers; sternarchus, a common suffix in knifefsh taxonomy, historically used for the putative subfamily Sternarchinae, based on Sternarchus Bloch & Schneider 1801 (=Apteronotus), sterno-, breast; archus, anus, referring to placement of anal opening near breast
Melanosternarchus amaru Bernt, Crampton, Orfinger & Albert 2018 amaru, a serpent in Quechuan mythology, referring to its snake-like shape
Parapteronotus Albert 2001 para-, near, referring to phylogenetic position of this lineage as sister taxon to other members of proposed subfamily Apteronotinae; Apteronotus, type genus of family
Parapteronotus hasemani (Ellis 1913) in honor of John D. Haseman (1882-1969), field collector in the Carnegie Museum of Natural History’s Department of Ichthyology from 1908-1911, who collected type
Pariosternarchus Albert & Crampton 2006 pario, cheek, referring to expanded ventrolateral surface of head; sternarchus, a common suffix in knifefish taxonomy, historically used for the putative subfamily Sternarchinae, based on Sternarchus Bloch & Schneider 1801 (=Apteronotus), sterno-, breast, archus, anus, referring to placement of anal opening near breast
Pariosternarchus amazonensis Albert & Crampton 2006 –ensis, suffix denoting place: known from the main Amazon river channels of Brazil and Peru
Platyurosternarchus Mago-Leccia 1994 platys, broad and ourus, tail, referring to deep caudal peduncle of P. macrostomus; sternarchus, a common suffix in knifefish taxonomy, historically used for the putative subfamily Sternarchinae, based on Sternarchus Bloch & Schneider 1801 (=Apteronotus), sterno-, breast, archus, anus, referring to placement of anal opening near breast
Platyurosternarchus crypticus de Santana & Vari 2009 hidden or secret, referring to its previously undetected, albeit very distinct, differences between it and P. macrostomus
Platyurosternarchus macrostomus (Günther 1870) macro-, long or large; stomus, mouth, referring to wide mouth cleft, more than half the length of the snout
Porotergus Ellis 1912 poro, pore; tergum, back, referring to numerous mucous pores on mid-dorsal band or stripe of P. gymnotus and P. gimbeli
Porotergus duende de Santana & Crampton 2010 Portuguese word for elf or imp, referring to its “diminutive” size (up to 140 mm TL)
Porotergus gimbeli Ellis 1912 in honor of Indiana philanthropist Jacob (Jake) Gimbel (1876-1943), whose generosity made the Gimbel Expedition to British Guiana, where type was collected, possible
Porotergus gymnotus Ellis 1912 gymnos, bare or naked; notus, back, referring to absence of scales along back to beyond origin of dorsal-fin filament
Sternarchella Eigenmann 1905 –ella, a diminutive, referring to previous placement of S. schotti in Sternarchus (=Apteronotus), distinguished by its “much shorter” snout and “very much smaller” mouth
Sternarchella calhamazon Lundberg, Coz Fernandes, Campos da Paz & Sullivan 2013 named for the Calhamazon Project, a 1992-1997 Brazilian-U.S. collaborative ichthyological inventory of the deep river channels of the Brazilian Amazon; derived from the Portuguese calha for channel plus Amazon (pronounced cal-yah-mazon)
Sternarchella curvioperculata Godoy 1968 curvus, curved; operculata, opercle, referring to concavity of dorsal margin of opercle [possibly a species of Apteronotus]
Sternarchella duccis (Lundberg, Cox Fernandes & Albert 1996) named for DUCCIS (pronounced dū’ssĭs), acronym of an ichthyological club, the Duke University Center for Creative Ichthyological Studies
Sternarchella orinoco Mago-Leccia 1995 named for the Río Orinoco basin of Venezuela, where it lives in the main channel of large rivers
Sternarchella orthos Mago-Leccia 1994 straight, referring to dorsal profile of head and body
Sternarchella patriciae Evans, Crampton & Albert 2017 in honor of Patricia Evans, a civil-rights activist and community leader in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA (and the senior author’s mother, K. M. Evans, pers. comm.)
Sternarchella raptor (Lundberg, Cox Fernandes & Albert 1996) plunderer, a commonly used term in zoology for a predacious animal, here referring to its well-toothed jaws and tail-eating habit
Sternarchella rex Evans, Crampton & Albert 2017 king, referring to its body size and robust appearance (the largest known species in the genus, reaching 412 mm LEA (length from tip of snout to end of anal fin)
Sternarchella schotti (Steindachner 1868) patronym not identified, probably in honor of German-American cartographer, botanist and geologist Arthur Schott (1814-1875), who collected fishes in Colombia in 1857
Sternarchella sima Starks 1913 blunt-nosed, referring to blunt, rounded snout overhanging a small mouth
Sternarchogiton Eigenmann 1905 geiton, neighbor; Sternarchus (=Apternotus), referring to previous placement of S. nattereri in that genus
Sternarchogiton labiatus de Santana & Crampton 2007 lipped, referring to “unusual” and diagnostic three-lobed structure on lower lip
Sternarchogiton nattereri (Steindachner 1868) in honor of Johann Natterer (1787-1843), who explored South America and collected specimens for 18 years, including type of this species
Sternarchogiton porcinum Eigenmann & Allen 1942 porcine or pig-like, referring to the “strong inclusion of the lower jaw within the upper”
Sternarchogiton zuanoni de Santana & Vari 2010 in honor of Jansen Zuanon, Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia (Manaus), who has contributed “enormously” to our knowledge of the ecology and taxonomy of fishes from the Amazon basin (he also helped collect type)
Sternarchorhynchus Castelnau 1855 a Sternarchus (=Apteronotus) with a curved rhynchus, or snout, referring to snout produced into a long tube, slightly arched downwards
Sternarchorhynchus axelrodi de Santana & Vari 2010 in honor of pet-book publisher Herbert R. Axelrod (1927-2017), whose “generous support of ichthyological research” assisted with the completion of the authors’ revision of the genus
Sternarchorhynchus britskii Campos-da-Paz 2000 in honor of Heraldo A. Britski (Universidade de São Paulo), who first noted the presence of this species in the upper Rio Paraná system (Brazil), and who has contributed much to advance our knowledge of neotropical fishes both through his own and his students’ studies
‘Sternarchorhynchus caboclo de Santana & Nogueira 2006 Brazilian-Portuguese word for a person of mixed Brazilian Indian and European or African ancestry, named in honor of the caboclos of northern Brazil, whose field knowledge has contributed greatly to our understanding of neotropical fishes
Sternarchorhynchus chaoi de Santana & Vari 2010 in honor of ichthyologist Ning Labish Chao, Universidade Federal do Amazonas, for “invaluable” assistance and financial support to the senior author during his studies of gymnotiform fishes in Manaus, Brazil
Sternarchorhynchus cramptoni de Santana & Vari 2010 in honor of William Crampton (b. 1969), University of Central Florida, for many contributions to our knowledge of the biology and systematics of gymnotiform fishes
Sternarchorhynchus curumim de Santana & Crampton 2006 Brazilian-Portuguese derivate of the Tupí-Guarani word for child, curumi, or kurumí, referring to its small size (up to 211 mm TL)
Sternarchorhynchus curvirostris (Boulenger 1887) curvis, bent; rostris, snout, referring to long, tubular snout, “bent downwards”
Sternarchorhynchus freemani de Santana & Vari 2010 in honor of Bryon J. Freeman (b. 1950), University of Georgia, for “invaluable” assistance to the senior author at the Georgia Museum of Natural History
Sternarchorhynchus galibi de Santana & Vari 2010 name of town that began as a major settlement of the indigenous Caribs, at the mouth of the Marowijne, the drainage system that includes type locality along border between Suriname and French Guiana
Sternarchorhynchus gnomus de Santana & Taphorn 2006 Latin for dwarf, the smallest member of the genus (152 mm TL)
Sternarchorhynchus goeldii de Santana & Vari 2010 in honor of Swiss-Brazilian zoologist Émil (or Emílio) Goeldi (1859-1917), Director of the Museo Paraense, for many contributions to our knowledge of many groups of Amazonian animals, including fishes
Sternarchorhynchus hagedornae de Santana & Vari 2010 in honor of physiologist Mary Hagedorn, Smithsonian Institution, who collected type series and has made many contributions to our understanding of the diversity of gymnotiform fishes
Sternarchorhynchus higuchii de Santana & Vari 2010 in honor of ichthyologist Horácio Higuchi, Museu Paraense Emilio Goeldi, for “invaluable” assistance to the senior author during his early studies of gymnotiform fishes
Sternarchorhynchus inpai de Santana & Vari 2010 of INPA, acronym of Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia (Manaus, Brazil), a center for the study of the biodiversity of the Brazilian Amazon for over 50 years
Sternarchorhynchus jaimei de Santana & Vari 2010 in honor of molecular biologist Jaime Ribeiro Carvalho, Jr., Centro do Jovem Aquarista, for “invaluable” assistance to the senior author during the early phases of his studies of gymnotiform fishes
Sternarchorhynchus kokraimoro de Santana & Vari 2010 named for the Kokraimoro, a group within the Kayabo tribe whose ancestral lands included type locality (Rio Xingu, Pará, Brazil)
Sternarchorhynchus mareikeae de Santana & Vari 2010 in honor of German biologist Mareike Roeder, who has “greatly added to the senior author’s life”
Sternarchorhynchus marreroi de Santana & Vari 2010 in honor of Críspulo Marrero, Universidad Nacional Experimental de los Llanos Occidentales, who has “greatly” contributed to our knowledge of gymnotiform biology in Venezuela
Sternarchorhynchus mendesi de Santana & Vari 2010 in honor of George Nilson Mendes, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, for his assistance to the senior author during the early phases of his studies of gymnotiform fishes
Sternarchorhynchus mesensis Campos-da-Paz 2000 –ensis, suffix denoting place: Serra da Mesa, an area of the upper River Tocantins region (Goiás, Brazil), type locality
Sternarchorhynchus montanus de Santana & Vari 2010 mountain, referring to type locality in the foothills of the Andean Cordilleras (Río Marañon, Amazonas, Peru)
Sternarchorhynchus mormyrus (Steindachner 1868) referring to Mormyrus (sensu lato), a genus of weakly electric, ecologically convergent African fishes (Osteoglossiformes: Mormyridae), many of which, like this species, possess a long, tubular snout, bent downwards
Sternarchorhynchus oxyrhynchus (Müller & Troschel 1849) oxys, sharp; rhynchus, snout, referring to snout produced into a long tube, slightly arched downwards
Sternarchorhynchus retzeri de Santana & Vari 2010 in honor of Michael Retzer, Curator of Fishes, Illinois Natural History Survey, for “invaluable” assistance through the years to both authors in the course of this and other research projects
Sternarchorhynchus roseni Mago-Leccia 1994 in honor of Donn Eric Rosen (1929-1986), American Museum of Natural History, for his “outstanding” contributions to the biology and systematics of fishes
Sternarchorhynchus schwassmanni de Santana & Vari 2010 in honor of Horst O. Schwassmann (b. 1922), University of Florida, for contributions to the knowledge of electric knifefishes
Sternarchorhynchus severii de Santana & Nogueira 2006 in honor of biologist William Severi, for his contribution to the knowledge of the fishes of northeastern Brazil
Sternarchorhynchus starksi de Santana & Vari 2010 in honor of ichthyologist Edwin Chapin Starks (1867-1932), Stanford University, who in 1911 collected a portion of the series that served as the basis for this description and who made a number of contributions to our knowledge of the anatomy of fishes
Sternarchorhynchus stewarti de Santana & Vari 2010 in honor of Donald Stewart (b. 1946), College of Environmental Science of Forestry, State University of New York, who collected the specimens that first brought this species to the authors’ attention, and who has made many contributions to our knowledge of the fishes of the western portions of the Amazon basin
Sternarchorhynchus taphorni de Santana & Vari 2010 in honor of Donald C. Taphorn (b. 1951), Universidad Nacional Experimental de los Llanos Occidentales, who “generously” assisted the authors with this and other publications over the years, and who has made many contributions to our understanding of South American freshwater fishes
Sternarchorhynchus villasboasi de Santana & Vari 2010 in honor of Brazilian activist Orlando Villa Bôas (1914-2002), who was instrumental in the designation of the Xingu National Park, for his diverse endeavors to ameliorate the impact of development projects on the indigenous peoples of that region
Sternarchorhynchus yepezi de Santana & Vari 2010 in honor of Venezuelan ichthyologist Augustin Fernández-Yépez (1916-1977), whose research on Sternarchorhynchus demonstrated that the diversity within the genus was greater than had been recognized
Tembeassu Triques 1998 from the native Tupí words tembé, lip, and açú, large, with the “ç” changed to “ss,” referring to enlarged fleshy lateral lobe on chin
Tembeassu marauna Triques 1998 from the native Tupí maraúna, ghost, referring to its being “hidden” in its habitat
Tembeassu titanicus Peixoto, Campos-da-Paz, Menezes, de Santana, Triques & Datovo 2022 –icus, belonging to: Titan, the pre-Olympian god, referring to its larger size compared with T. marauna
Tenebrosternarchus Bernt, Fronk, Evans & Albert 2020 tenebrae, darkness, referring to black pigmentation of T. preto; sternarchus, a common suffix in knifefish taxonomy, historically used for the putative subfamily Sternarchinae, based on Sternarchus Bloch & Schneider 1801 (=Apteronotus), sterno-, breast; archus, anus, referring to placement of anal opening near breast
Tenebrosternarchus preto (de Santana & Crampton 2007) Portuguese for black, referring to its diagnostic dark pigmentation
Subfamily STERNARCHORHAMPHINAE
Orthosternarchus Ellis 1913 ortho-, straight, probably referring to “long, straight” tubular snout; sternarchus, referring to its then-placement in the subfamily Sternarchinae
Orthosternarchus tamandua (Boulenger 1898) genus name for edentate anteaters of tropical America, from the Portuguese tamanduá, derived from the Tupí taa, ant, and mundeu, trap or catch, presumably referring to long and nearly straight tubular snout, resembling that of an anteater
Sternarchorhamphus Eigenmann 1905 described as intermediate between Sternarchus (=Apteronotus) and Sternarchorhynchus, with the long snout (rhamphus) of the latter and mouth size approaching that of the former
Sternarchorhamphus muelleri (Steindachner 1881) in honor of Johannes Müller (1801-1858), who, with Franz Hermann Troschel (1810-1882), described its presumed congener at the time, Sternarchorhynchus oxyrhynchus, in 1849