Heterobranchus bidorsalis Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1809
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
Heterobranchus bidorsalis, the African catfish or eel-like fattyfin catfish, is an airbreathing catfish found in Africa. It is closely related to the vundu catfish, which is well known among fishermen.
Wikipedia contributors, Heterobranchus bidorsalis; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T22:47:37.906507+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Heterobranchus bidorsalis Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1809
- Name authority
- Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1809
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Teleostei
- Order
- Siluriformes
- Family
- Clariidae
- Genus
- Heterobranchus
- 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
- orderSiluriformes
- familyClariidae Bonaparte, 1845
- genusHeterobranchus Geoffroy St. Hilaire, 1809
- speciesHeterobranchus bidorsalis Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1809
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Heterobranchus. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Heterobranchus longifilis Valenciennes, 1840 | ClariidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Heterobranchus boulengeri Pellegrin, 1922 | ClariidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Heterobranchus isopterus Bleeker, 1863 | ClariidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Heterobranchus geoffroyi Valenciennes, 1840 Valenciennes, 1840 | synonym |
| Heterobranchus intermedius Günther, 1864 Günther, 1864 | synonym |
| Heterobranchus senegalensis Valenciennes, 1840 Valenciennes, 1840 | synonym |
| Hetrobranchus bidorsalis Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1809 Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1809 | 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.
- Geoffroy St. Hilaire, E. (1809). Poissons du Nil, de la mer Rouge et de la Méditerranée. In: Description de l’Egypte Ou Recueil Des Observations et Des Recherches Qui Ont Été Faites En Égypte Pendant L’expedition de l’Armée Français, Publié Par Les Ordres de Sa Majesté-L’Empereur Napoléon Le Grand. (Imprimerie Impériale). Paris. Histoire Natu, v. 1 (part 1): 1–52 [141–338], Poissons Pls. 1–17. 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:3L7TH. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.