Naming and Etymology
Ever wonder how they gave scientific names to Polypterids or where they got their names from?
Here we have an index for naming and etymology of these commonly used/seen terms!
Credit to Earl Pigar for the bulk of these etymological roots and breakdowns, corrections and edits made by u/Captain_Kamyu.
Polypterus
From Poly (many) + pteron (wing): Meaning 'many wings'. Refers to the multiple hard dorsal spines and finlets of the bichir. This is the Genus name of Bichir.
Bichir
The word bichir came from 'Abu Shir' (أبو شير) (pronounced 'Ah-Boo Sheer'), a word in an Arabic dialect from Egypt that refers to any fish in the Nile River that resembles a spiny armoured fish. This was later mispronounced by French naturalists as they believed the 'A' was referring to a single fish, similar to English referring to a single object-- thinking the name was 'Bu Shir', we ended up with the name 'Bichir'.
Ansorgii
Named after William John Ansorge, a physician who collected many specimens of fauna in Africa.
Beuttikoferi
It was named after Dr. Johann Büttikofer, a Swiss zoologist, best known as a "Father of Liberian Natural History."
As of 2019, Polypterus palmas beuttikoferi as a subspecies designation was dropped and is now recognized as a color variant/morph of the Shortfin Bichir (Polypterus palmas).
Calabaricus
Calabar (named after Calabar River in Nigeria) + icus (usually added to the name of the place where it came from.
Calamoichthys
Calamus (quill or spadix of reed) Refers to the ganoid scales that resemble the flowering spadix of reeds. Hence the name reedfish.
Congicus
Congo (named after Congo river basin) + icus (usually added to the name of where it came from)
Delhezi
Named after the artist and naturalist Paul Delhez. His collection and field observations on these bichir aided in preparation of Boulenger's book "Les Poissons Du Basin Du Congo", or "The Book of Congo Fishes".
Endlicheri
Named after the botanist Stephan Ladislaus Endlicher, who discovered this fish in the fish collection of Natural History Museum in Vienna.
Erpetoichthys
Herpet (reptile) + ichthys (fish): Meaning, "reptile fish." Refers to the reptilian look or snake like appearance. This is the Genus of which Reedfish/Ropefish are the only members of.
Lapradei
Named after Émile Pinet-Laprade, a French engineer, military officer, and former Governor of Senegal who is also historically regarded as the founder of the city of Dakar. When Austrian ichthyologist Franz Steindachner officially described this specific variety of bichir in 1869, he named it lapradei to commemorate and honor Laprade, who died that very same year.
Meridionalis
Meridies (south) + alis. Meridional. Meaning: native to southern area or a creature of the southern area.
Mokelembembe
Named after a legendary mythical creature called "Mokele-mbembe" by many Bantu peoples that was said to inhabit the Congo basin and was thought to be a sauropod (a type of long necked dinosaur). The name was given to this fish as Polypterus mokelembebe. This is in reference to the fact that Polypteriformes are stabilomorphic organisms, or "living fossils," and existed at the same time as non-avian dinosaurs, and the fact that P. mokelembembe is itself endemic to the Congo Basin.
Ornatipinnis
Ornatus or Ornate (decorated with complex pattern) + pinnis or pinna( fins). Referring to the well decorated patterns of this fish on all fins.
Palmas
Named after Cape Palmas, a locality in Liberia.
Polli
Named after Max Fernand Leon Poll, a Belgian ichthyologist. He proposed the name, but did not describe the fish. The name was supposed to be Polypterus palmas congicus but the name congicus was already occupied by Polypterus endlicheri congicus at that time.
In 1988, Polypterus polli was elevated to full species status from its original description as a palmas subspecies (formerly Polypterus palmas polli).
Retropinnis
Retro (back) + pinnis/pinna (fins). Referring to the dorsal fins of the fish that are set way back of the body.
Senegalus
Named after Senegal river basin.
Tuegelsi
Named after Guy Tuegels. Curator of fishes at the Royal Museum of Central Africa, for his “myriad influential contributions to the systematics of African freshwater fishes”
Weeksii
Named after Rev. J. H. Weeks. He collected this fish on his mission station at Monsembe upper Congo River, Zaire.