Labeobarbus johnstonii (Boulenger, 1907)
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
Labeobarbus johnstonii is a species of cyprinid fish. It has long been placed in Barbus, the "wastebin genus" for barbs, by default, and this is still being done by the IUCN. However, the species is increasingly being restored to related yellowfish genus Labeobarbus which seems a much more appropriate placement. It is presumably hexaploid like the other yellowfish. The supposed subspecies latirostris of its relative L. intermedius is actually misidentified L. johnstonii. Its natural habitats are rivers and freshwater lakes. It is found in Lake Malawi, the Shire River and their larger tributaries in Malawi, Mozambique and Tanzania. Like other yellowfish, L. johnstonii is a large species. It can grow to more than 30 cm (12 in) standard length and over 4 kilograms (8.8 lb) in weight. This freshwater fish is found in small group in all sorts of underwater habitat. They are omnivores, but adult fish like to eat smaller fishes in particular. For spawning, they migrate towards the rivers' headwaters in the rainy season.
Wikipedia contributors, Labeobarbus johnstonii; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T22:58:05.780827+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Labeobarbus johnstonii (Boulenger, 1907)
- Name authority
- (Boulenger, 1907)
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Teleostei
- Order
- Cypriniformes
- Family
- Cyprinidae
- Genus
- Labeobarbus
- 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
- orderCypriniformes
- familyCyprinidae Rafinesque, 1815
- subfamilyLabeoninae Bleeker, 1859
- genusLabeobarbus Rüppell, 1835
- speciesLabeobarbus johnstonii (Boulenger, 1907)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Labeobarbus. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Labeobarbus acuticeps (Matthes, 1959) | CyprinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Labeobarbus acutirostris (Bini, 1940) | CyprinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Labeobarbus alluaudi (Pellegrin, 1909) | CyprinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Labeobarbus batesii (Boulenger, 1903) | CyprinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Labeobarbus boulengeri Vreven, Musschoot, Snoeks & Schliewen, 2016 | CyprinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Labeobarbus brevispinis (Holly, 1927) | CyprinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Labeobarbus bynni (Forsskål, 1775) | CyprinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Labeobarbus caudovittatus (Boulenger, 1902) | CyprinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Labeobarbus clarkeae (Banister, 1984) | CyprinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Labeobarbus claudinae (De Vos & Thys van den Audenaerde, 1990) | CyprinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Labeobarbus codringtonii (Boulenger, 1908) | CyprinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Labeobarbus dartevellei (Poll, 1945) | CyprinidaeChordata | 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 |
|---|---|
| Barbus intermedius eurystomus Keilhack, 1908 Keilhack, 1908 | synonym |
| Barbus nyassae Keilhack, 1908 Keilhack, 1908 | synonym |
| Barbus globiceps Worthington, 1933 Worthington, 1933 | synonym |
| Labeobarbus brevicauda (Keilhack, 1908) (Keilhack, 1908) | synonym |
| Varicorhinus nyasensis Worthington, 1933 Worthington, 1933 | synonym |
| Barbus njassae Keilhack, 1908 Keilhack, 1908 | synonym |
| Barbus intermedius brevicauda Keilhack, 1908 Keilhack, 1908 | synonym |
| Barbus johnstonii Boulenger, 1907 Boulenger, 1907 | synonym |
| Barbus eurystomus Keilhack, 1908 Keilhack, 1908 | 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.
- https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=1526111 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:3RJ56. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.