Ectodus descampsii Boulenger, 1898
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
Ectodus descampsii is a species of cichlid fish endemic to Lake Tanganyika in East Africa where it prefers areas with substrates of coarse sand. It feeds on micro-organisms, algae and diatoms. This species reaches a length of 10.4 centimetres (4.1 in) TL. It is also found in the aquarium trade. It is currently the only known member of its genus. The specific name honours Capitaine Georges Descamps (1855-1938), a Belgian officer in the anti-slavery movement at Lake Tanganyika.
Wikipedia contributors, Ectodus; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T19:34:27.454420+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Ectodus descampsii Boulenger, 1898
- Name authority
- Boulenger, 1898
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Teleostei
- Order
- Cichliformes
- Family
- Cichlidae
- Genus
- Ectodus
- Extinction status
- Not supplied by this source
Source habitat flags: Marine: no · Freshwater: yes · Terrestrial: no. These do not form a complete habitat description.
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- gigaclassActinopterygii
- superclassActinopteri
- classTeleostei
- orderCichliformes
- familyCichlidae Bonaparte, 1835
- subfamilyPseudocrenilabrinae Fowler, 1934
- genusEctodus Boulenger, 1898
- speciesEctodus descampsii Boulenger, 1898
Close classified relatives
No other member of this genus is present in the selected snapshot.
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Ectodus descampsi Boulenger, 1898 Boulenger, 1898 | synonym |
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- Boulenger, G. A. (1898). Report on the fishes recently obtained by Mr. J. E. S. Moore in Lake Tanganyika. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London, 1898 (pt 3): 494–497. Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:38QDM. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.