Alestes

Alestes
	Alestes baremoze
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Actinopterygii
Order:	Characiformes
Family:	Alestidae
Genus:	Alestes; J. P. Müller & Troschel, 1846
Type species
	Salmo niloticus; Linnaeus, 1758
Species
	See text.
Synonyms
	Alestiops Hoedeman, 1951

Alestes is a genus of freshwater ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Alestidae, known as the "African Characidae" as they are found exclusively on that continent. As suggested by that name, they Alestidae was formerly included in Characidae. Myletes was a synonym of Alestes, which was used for various South American serrasalmids too but this name was suppressed by Opinion 1813 of the ICZN.^[2]^[3]

Within the Lake Chad basin, Alestes and Hydrocynus, collectively known as salanga, are lightly smoked and dried.^[4]

Species

There are currently seven recognized species in this genus:^[5]

Alestes ansorgii Boulenger, 1910
Alestes baremoze (Joannis, 1835) (Silversides)
Alestes dentex (Linnaeus, 1758) (Characin)
Alestes inferus Stiassny, Schelly & Mamonekene, 2009
Alestes liebrechtsii Boulenger, 1898
Alestes macrophthalmus Günther, 1867 (Torpedo robber)
Alestes stuhlmannii Pfeffer, 1896

References

^ ^a ^b ^c Eschmeyer, William N.; Fricke, Ron & van der Laan, Richard (eds.). "Genera in the family Alestidae". Catalog of Fishes. California Academy of Sciences. Retrieved 12 June 2025.
^ Myletes Cuvier, 1814, Integrated Taxonomic Information System
^ International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature (1995). "OPINION 1813 Alestes Miiller & Troschel, 1844 (Osteichthyes, Characiformes): conserved" (PDF). Bulletin of zoological nomenclature. 52 (2): 219–221.
^ Fisheries Development Within the Framework of the Lake Chad Basin Commission by A. Staunch, presented at the Symposium on the Evaluation of Fishery Resources in the Development and Management of Inland Fisheries, 1972 (hosted by the Food and Agriculture Organization)
^ Eschmeyer, William N.; Fricke, Ron & van der Laan, Richard (eds.). "Species in the genus Alestes". Catalog of Fishes. California Academy of Sciences. Retrieved 12 June 2025.

External links

on 2014-11-26 Bailly, N. (2014). Alestes. In: Froese, R. and D. Pauly. Editors. (2014) FishBase. Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species

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[Cof_family-1] Eschmeyer, William N.; Fricke, Ron & van der Laan, Richard (eds.). "Genera in the family Alestidae". Catalog of Fishes. California Academy of Sciences. Retrieved 12 June 2025.

[2] Myletes Cuvier, 1814, Integrated Taxonomic Information System

[ICZN-3] International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature (1995). "OPINION 1813 Alestes Miiller & Troschel, 1844 (Osteichthyes, Characiformes): conserved" (PDF). Bulletin of zoological nomenclature. 52 (2): 219–221.

[4] Fisheries Development Within the Framework of the Lake Chad Basin Commission by A. Staunch, presented at the Symposium on the Evaluation of Fishery Resources in the Development and Management of Inland Fisheries, 1972 (hosted by the Food and Agriculture Organization)

[Cof_genus-5] Eschmeyer, William N.; Fricke, Ron & van der Laan, Richard (eds.). "Species in the genus Alestes". Catalog of Fishes. California Academy of Sciences. Retrieved 12 June 2025.

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