Chelon richardsonii (Smith, 1846)
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
The South African mullet (Chelon richardsonii), also called a harder mullet or simply harder, is a species of mullet. It is found in South African coastal waters from Walvis Bay (Namibia) to KwaZulu-Natal, and grows to a maximum length of 40.5 cm (15.9 in). The person the specific name honours was not recorded by Andrew Smith when he described this species but it is most likely to be John Richardson (1787-1865), the Scottish naturalist, surgeon and Arctic explorer.
It is also found inland in the waters of the Olifants River (Western Cape).
Wikipedia contributors, South African mullet; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T19:18:20.596532+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Chelon richardsonii (Smith, 1846)
- Name authority
- (Smith, 1846)
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Teleostei
- Order
- Mugiliformes
- Family
- Mugilidae
- Genus
- Chelon
- Extinction status
- Not supplied by this source
Source habitat flags: Marine: yes · 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
- orderMugiliformes
- familyMugilidae Jarocki, 1822
- genusChelon Artedi, 1793
- speciesChelon richardsonii (Smith, 1846)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Chelon. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Chelon auratus (Risso, 1810) | MugilidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Chelon bandialensis (Diouf, 1991) | MugilidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Chelon bispinosus (Bowdich, 1825) | MugilidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Chelon dumerili (Steindachner, 1870) | MugilidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Chelon ramada (Risso, 1827) | MugilidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Chelon saliens (Risso, 1810) | MugilidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Chelon tricuspidens (Smith, 1935) | MugilidaeChordata | 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 |
|---|---|
| Liza richardsoni (Smith, 1846) (Smith, 1846) | synonym |
| Mugil richardsonii Smith, 1846 Smith, 1846 | synonym |
| Liza richardsonii (Smith, 1846) (Smith, 1846) | synonym |
| Mugil multilineatus Smith, 1846 Smith, 1846 | 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=1042831 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:TVC7. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.