Everyone knows these names and know what fish is behind it: Guppy, Platy, Swordtail, fire tail or scalar. I go to my dealer or talk with people I share this hobby with me, so there are no problems. Or is it? Is there no difference? What about the Deutschlandplaty or the green or red swordtail? And then there are also the Marmorskalar the Rauchskalar and what about the Altum-scalar?
Carl von Linné (1707 - 1778) laid the foundations for the taxonomy and introduced the binomial nomenclature. Each species in the animal and plant kingdom a double name, the name the genus and a second for the species exists.
The scientific name
These names are assigned to each of which is clearly a certain type. Let's go back to our examples above, and Mamorskalar Rauchskalar belong to the same species and are only varieties, colors or breeds of the same species, namely, Pterophyllum scalare from. The Altum Skalar in turn is a distinct species, but belonging to the same genus Pterophyllum altum fact. This binomial nomenclature uses largely the old language of science, the Latin language.
Staying with our example:
Pterophyllum is composed of the word stems ptero = wing (sail) and phyllum = leaf, freely transferable in the German language is it then angelfish and scalar means head and here is probably for the rung-like pattern on its body. Altum means high, in this case the German name High angelfish. Not always, the German name, a literal translation.
The German name
Why should I use the scientific names, the German name can still remember a lot easier.
Some German names are not clear, the name Butterfly cichlid is the same for three different fish: Microgeophagus altispinosus, the actual butterfly cichlid, Microgeophagus altispinosus, Bolivian butterfly cichlid and Anomalochromis thomasi, the African butterfly cichlid. Similarly, the name Leopard catfish, so there are a whole series of similarly colored armored catfish under this name in trade.
The numbers of catfish and other fish
What did it now with the numbers up, for example L-46?
are now new animals or plants, etc. discovered they get a name after the above nomenclature. For this to happen, they must place in the existing system. This covers the taxonomy are rough here said the fish and other living things, in classes, orders, families, genera, species, and finally divided and named. You have to be described scientifically accurate.
In the 80's and 90's introduced many armor catfish from South America that had not yet been described scientifically, so even had a name. In order to distinguish them may still have a few bright minds these fish just numbers given for better and easier distinction. In this case, the L stands for Loricariidae. This is the term for the family of armor catfish in the order of the catfish-like fish.
The fish were numbered consecutively according to their external and their habitat, it appeared like it in the trade. Many of them are now described scientifically and have a proper name. Nevertheless, is the old name will often such as the L-46 is now properly Hypancistrus zebra.
addition to the L-number, there is the C-numbers for the subfamily of the armored catfish Corydoradinae, the A-numbers for all the Apistogramma species and may soon have one or more other classification.
What did it now with the terms and abbreviations about?
is, as we have seen above, the name from the term for the family and of the species exchanged frequently than the addition of the name of the describer and the year of first description.
example: Corydoras sterbai, Knaack, 1962, this fish was thus described by Knaack first time in 1962 and classified.
It happens sometimes that species later assigned to another genus, for example, if the genus is revised and described, or is clear that a fish is different from the generic description and a different or new species is assigned. Although this changes the name, but there remains the first description.
example, loach, Botia macracantha earlier, Bleeker, 1852, now Chromobotia macracantha, Bleeker, 1852.
sp. this code or spec. stands for species = Art,
This abbreviation is used when a fish is not yet clearly classified or described his assignment to a genus but certain. The species name is therefore by this code replaced.
example: Ancistrus sp. is often used for antenna catfish, their assignment is not known.
The shortcut appears in the use of the symbol aff. on.
aff. represents affinis similar to German.
example: Ancistrus sp. aff. dolichopterus this means a catfish, the species of blue catfish, Ancistrus dolichopterus is similar.
cf this abbreviation stands for confer, compare to German! (Note the imperative)
This is called a type that is comparable to the type mentioned and will very likely be assigned to it.
example: C 24 Corydoras acutus cf. So this is a catfish is probably the type Corydoras acutus is assigned. explain
Conclusion
If you want your fish to another, or discussed with other aquarists then forced to use the scientific name. It is clear and avoids confusion with other fish and is in any language around the globe, scientists accurately understood as by amateur aquarists.
literature and links:
Dennis Furmanek on his website
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