''Auchenoglanis'' is a
genus
Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...
of relatively large, up to
SL,
claroteid catfish
The Claroteidae are a family of catfish (order Siluriformes) found in Africa. This family was separated from Bagridae. However, the monophyly of the family is sometimes contested.
The 9 genera contain 65 known species of claroteids. The family ...
es native to various freshwater habitats in
Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...
.
''Auchenoglanis'' is a primitive member of the subfamily Auchenoglanidinae (also includes ''
Notoglanidium'' and ''
Parauchenoglanis'') and represents a
stem group
In phylogenetics, the crown group or crown assemblage is a collection of species composed of the living representatives of the collection, the most recent common ancestor of the collection, and all descendants of the most recent common ancestor. ...
.
Species of this genus occur predominantly in the
Nilo-
Sudan
Sudan, officially the Republic of the Sudan, is a country in Northeast Africa. It borders the Central African Republic to the southwest, Chad to the west, Libya to the northwest, Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the east, Eritrea and Ethiopi ...
region and
Western Africa
West Africa, also known as Western Africa, is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Ma ...
, but also in the
Congo River
The Congo River, formerly also known as the Zaire River, is the second-longest river in Africa, shorter only than the Nile, as well as the third-largest river in the world list of rivers by discharge, by discharge volume, following the Amazon Ri ...
, Lakes
Albert
Albert may refer to:
Companies
* Albert Computers, Inc., a computer manufacturer in the 1980s
* Albert Czech Republic, a supermarket chain in the Czech Republic
* Albert Heijn, a supermarket chain in the Netherlands
* Albert Market, a street mar ...
and
Tanganyika.
''Auchenoglanis'' species mainly feed on
insect
Insects (from Latin ') are Hexapoda, hexapod invertebrates of the class (biology), class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body (Insect morphology#Head, head, ...
aquatic
larva
A larva (; : larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into their next life stage. Animals with indirect development such as insects, some arachnids, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase ...
e and eventually on small
mollusk
Mollusca is a phylum of protostomic invertebrate animals, whose members are known as molluscs or mollusks (). Around 76,000 extant species of molluscs are recognized, making it the second-largest animal phylum after Arthropoda. The ...
s,
alevin, and swimming insects. These feeding habits should also enable them to stand a relatively wide range of ecological conditions.
Living species
Following a
taxonomic
280px, Generalized scheme of taxonomy
Taxonomy is a practice and science concerned with classification or categorization. Typically, there are two parts to it: the development of an underlying scheme of classes (a taxonomy) and the allocation ...
review in 1991, only two living species (marked with a star* in the list) were recognized in this genus.
This is followed by
FishBase
FishBase is a global species database of fish species (specifically finfish). It is the largest and most extensively accessed online database on adult finfish on the web. [ and ]Catalog of Fishes
Catalog of Fishes is a comprehensive on-line database and reference work on the scientific names of fish species and genera. It is global in its scope and is hosted by the California Academy of Sciences. It has been compiled and is continuously up ...
. However, review in 2010 suggested that there are six additional species, which would bring the total to eight. Genetic studies indicate that additional, currently unrecognized species exist.
* '' Auchenoglanis acuticeps'' Pappenheim
Pappenheim is a town in the Weißenburg-Gunzenhausen district, in Bavaria, Germany. It is situated on the river Altmühl, south of Weißenburg in Bayern.
History
Historically, Pappenheim was a statelet within the Holy Roman Empire. It was ...
, 1914
* '' Auchenoglanis biscutatus''* ( É. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1809)
* '' Auchenoglanis occidentalis''* (Valenciennes
Valenciennes (, also , , ; ; or ; ) is a communes of France, commune in the Nord (French department), Nord Departments of France, department, Hauts-de-France, France.
It lies on the Scheldt () river. Although the city and region experienced ...
, 1840) (Bubu)
* '' Auchenoglanis sacchii'' ( Vinciguerra, 1898)
* '' Auchenoglanis senegali'' Retzer, 2010
* '' Auchenoglanis tanganicanus'' Boulenger, 1906
* '' Auchenoglanis tchadiensis'' Pellegrin, 1909
* '' Auchenoglanis wittei'' Giltay, 1930
Fossil species
''Auchenoglanis'' is rare in the fossil record
A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved ...
compared to other African catfishes. ''Auchenoglanis'' includes an extinct
Extinction is the termination of an organism by the death of its Endling, last member. A taxon may become Functional extinction, functionally extinct before the death of its last member if it loses the capacity to Reproduction, reproduce and ...
species, '' Auchenoglanis soye'' from Western Chad
Chad, officially the Republic of Chad, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of North Africa, North and Central Africa. It is bordered by Libya to Chad–Libya border, the north, Sudan to Chad–Sudan border, the east, the Central Afric ...
. A few other fossils are also attributed to ''Auchenoglanis'' with no specific species described.
References
Claroteidae
Fish of Africa
Catfish genera
Freshwater fish genera
Taxa named by Albert Günther
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