List of marine fishes of South Africa explained
See also: List of marine bony fishes of South Africa. This is a list of fishes recorded from the oceans bordering South Africa. This part of the list includes any fishes that are not bony fishes., which are the jawless and jawed cartilagenous fishes.This list comprises locally used common names, scientific names with author citation and recorded ranges. Ranges specified may not be the entire known range for the species, but should include the known range within the waters surrounding the Republic of South Africa.
List ordering and taxonomy complies where possible with the current usage in World Register of Marine Species, and may differ from the cited source, as listed citations are primarily for range or existence of records for the region. Sub-taxa within any given taxon are arranged alphabetically as a general rule.Details of each species may be available through the relevant internal links. Synonyms may be listed where useful (usually when recorded under the synonym).
Infraphylum Agnatha – Jawless fishes (Cyclostomes)
Class Myxini
Family: Myxinidae[1]
- Six-gill hagfish or snotslang Eptatretus hexatrema (Müller, 1834) (Walvis Bay to Durban)[2]
- Eightgill hagfish Eptatretus octatrema Barnard, 1923 (Agulhas bank)
- Fivegill hagfish Eptatretus profundus Barnard, 1923 (off Cape Point)
- Cape hagfish Myxine capensis Regan, 1913 (Cape of Good Hope)
Infraphylum Gnathostomata – Jawed fishes
Parvphylum Chondrichthyes – Cartilaginous fishes
=Family: Dasyatidae – Whiptail stingrays
- Short-tail stingray, Dasyatis brevicaudata (Hutton, 1875) (False Bay to Delagoa Bay)
- Blue stingray Dasyatis chrysonota (Smith, 1828) (Central Angola to Delagoa Bay) (syn. Dasyatis marmoratis)
- Thorntail stingray, Dasyatis thetidis Ogilby, 1899 (Algoa Bay to Mozambique)
- Pelagic stingray, Dasyatis violacea (Bonaparte, 1832) (offshore, two records from SA)
- Dragon stingray, Jenkins' whipray, Himantura draco Compagno and Heemstra, 1984 (off Durban)
- Sharpnose stingray, whitespotted whipray Himantura gerrardi (Gray, 1851) (Eastern Cape to Mozambique)
- Honeycomb stingray, reticulate whipray, Himantura uarnak (Forsskål, 1775) (Port Alfred to Mozambique)
- Roundnose stingray Himantura sp. (Durban bay)
- Bluespotted stingray, Kuhl's maskray, Neotrygon kuhlii (Müller & Henle, 1841) (Durban to tropical Indo-West Pacific)(Syn. Dasyatis kuhlii)
- Feathertail stingray, Cowtail stingray, Pastinachus sephen (Forsskål, 1775) (Zululand) (syn. Hypolophus sephen, Dasyatis sephen)
- Bluespotted ribbontail ray Taeniura lymma (Forsskål, 1775)
- Round ribbontail ray or giant reef rayTaeniura meyeni Müller & Henle, 1841 (Natal to Red Sea) (syn. Taeniura melanospilos Bleeker, 1853)
- Porcupine ray, Urogymnus asperrimus (Bloch and Schneider, 1801) (Natal to Indo-West Pacific)
Family: Gymnuridae – Butterflyrays
Family: Hexatrygonidae – Sixgill stingrays
Family: Myliobatidae – Eagle rays
- Spotted eagle ray, Aetobatus narinari (Euphrasen, 1790) (Mossel Bay to Mozambique)
- Bull ray, Aetomylaeus bovinus (Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1817), also reported as syn. Pteromylaeus bovinus (Saint-Hilaire, 1817) (South-western Cape to Zanzibar)[3]
- Manta, giant oceanic manta ray, Mobula birostris (Walbaum, 1792), also reported as syn. Manta birostris (Donndorff, 1798) (possibly circumtropical, from the Cape eastwards)[4]
- Longhorned mobula, Mobula eregoodootenkee (Cuvier, 1829) (Indo-West Pacific south to Natal)
- Spinetail mobula, devil fish, Mobula mobular (Bonnaterre, 1788), also recorded as syn. Mobula japanica (Müller & Henle, 1841) (Natal)[5]
- Shortfin devil ray Mobula kuhlii (Valenciennes, 1841) (Port Alfred to Indo-West Pacific)
- Spiny mobula, Chilean devil ray, Mobula tarapacana (Lloyd, 1908) (Reported from Natal and Jeffrey's Bay)
- Smoothtail mobula, bentfin devil ray, Mobula thurstoni (Lloyd, 1908) (Reported from Natal and Algoa Bay)
- Common eagle ray, Myliobatis aquila (Linnaeus, 1758) (Namibia to KwaZulu-Natal)
- Flapnose ray, Rhinoptera javanica Muller and Henle, 1841 (Durban and north)
=Order Rajiformes – Rays, skates and guitarfish
=
Family Anacanthobatidae
Family Arhynchobatidae
- Bathyraja smithii (Müller & Henle, 1841) (Agulhas bank and west of Cape Town)
Family Gurgesiellidae
- Cruriraja durbanensis (von Bonde and Swart, 1923) (off Western Cape province)
- Cruriraja parcomaculata von Bonde and Swart, 1923 (Lüderitz to Durban) also recorded as syn. Cruriraja triangularis Smith, 1964 (Durban to Mozambique)[7]
Family: Rajidae – Skates
- Arctic skate, Amblyraja hyperborea (Collett, 1879) recorded as syn. Raja robertsi Hulley, 1970 (west of Cape Town)[8]
- Slimeskate, Dipturus pullopunctatus (Smith, 1964) also recorded as syn. Raja pullopunctata Smith, 1964 (Luderitz to Mozambique)[9]
- Dipturus springeri (Wallace, 1967) reported as syn. Raja springeri Wallace, 1967 (Durban to Mozambique)[10]
- Blancmange skate, Leucoraja wallacei (Hulley, 1970)recorded as syn. Raja Wallacei Hulley, 1970 (Cape to Limpopo river mouth)[11]
- Malacoraja spinacidermis (Barnard, 1923) recorded as syn. Raja spinacidermis Barnard, 1923, (off west coast)[12]
- African dwarf skate, Neoraja stehmanni (Hulley, 1972) (West of Cape Town to south of Agulha Bank)
- Thornback skate Raja clavata Linnaeus, 1758, (Walvis Bay to Durban)
- Twineye skate, Raja miraletus Linnaeus, 1758, (False Bay to Durban)
- Biscuit skate or false thornback skate, Raja straeleni Poll, 1951, (West Africa to East London)
- Bigthorn skate, Rajella barnardi (Norman, 1935), also reported as syn. Raja confundens Hulley, 1970 (West coast from 19°S to east of Cape Point)[13]
- Munchkin skate, Rajella caudaspinosa (von Bonde & Swart, 1923), also recorded as syn. Raja caudaspinosa von Bonde and Swart, 1923 (Luderitz to Cape Point)[14]
- Ghost skate, Rajella dissimilis (Hulley, 1970) also recorded as syn. Raja dissimilis Hulley, 1970 (west of Cape Town)[15]
- Leopard skate, Rajella leoparda also reported as syn. Raja leopardus von Bonde and Swart, 1923, (west coast from 18°S to 35°S)[16]
- Smoothback skate, Rajella ravidula (Hulley, 1970), recorded as Raja ravidula Hulley, 1970 (off Cape Town)[17]
- Spearnose skate, bottlenose skate, Rostroraja alba (Lacepède, 1803) (West Africa to Madagascar) (syn. Raja alba)
=Family: Pristidae – Sawfishes [18]
Family: Rhinobatidae – Guitarfish
- Lesser sandshark or lesser guitarfish, Acroteriobatus annulatus (Müller & Henle, 1841), recorded as syn. Rhinobatos annulatus Smith in Müller & Henle, 1841 (Cape Columbine to Mozambique)[19]
- Greyspotted guitarfish, Acroteriobatus leucospilus (Norman, 1926), recorded as syn. Rhinobatos leucospilus Norman, 1926 (Durban to Amatikulu Bluff)[20]
- Speckled guitarfish, Acroteriobatus ocellatus (Norman, 1926), recorded as syn. Rhinobatos ocellatus Norman, 1926 (Algoa Bay)[21]
- Bowmouth guitarfish, Rhina ancylostomus Bloch & Schneider, 1801 (KwaZulu-Natal to tropical Ind-West Pacific)
- Bluntnose guitarfish, Rhinobatos blochii Müller & Henle, 1841 (Cape to Walvis Bay)
- Slender guitarfish, Rhinobatos holcorhynchus Norman, 1922 (Port Shepstone to Zululand)
- Giant sandshark, giant guitarfish, Rhynchobatus djiddensis (Forsskål, 1775) (Knysna to Mozambique)
=
Family: Narkidae
Family: Torpedinidae
- Atlantic electric ray, Atlantic torpedo, Tetronarce nobiliana (Bonaparte, 1835), recorded as syn. Torpedo nobiliana Bonaparte, 1835, (Western Cape coast to Algoa Bay)[23]
- Blackspotted electric ray, blackspotted torpedo, Torpedo fuscomaculata Peters, 1855 (Cape Columbine to Mozambique)
- Marbled electrical ray, gulf torpedo, Torpedo sinuspersici Olfers, 1831, (Eastern Cape to Mozambique)
=Family: Carcharhinidae – Requiem sharks
- Silvertip shark Carcharhinus albimarginatus (Rüppell, 1837) (North of Cape Vidal)
- Bignose shark Carcharhinus altimus (Springer, 1950) (Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal)
- Shortnose blacktail reef shark or grey reef shark Carcharhinus amblyrhynchos (Bleeker, 1856) (Northern KwaZulu-Natal to Red Sea) also recorded as syn. Carcharhinus wheeleri (Garrick, 1982)
- Java shark, pigeye shark, Carcharhinus amboinensis (Müller and Henle, 1839) (Eastern Cape and Natal)
- Copper shark, bronze whaler, Carcharhinus brachyurus (Günther, 1870) (Namibia to Durban)
- Spinner shark, Carcharhinus brevipinna (Müller and Henle, 1838) (Mossel Bay to Red sea)
- Silky shark, Carcharhinus falciformis (Bibron, 1839) (Durban to Zanzibar)
- Zambezi or Bull shark, Carcharhinus leucas (Valenciennes in Müller & Henle, 1839) (Port Elizabeth to Mozambique)
- Blacktip shark, Carcharhinus limbatus (Müller and Henle, 1839) (Southern Cape to Madagascar)
- Oceanic whitetip shark Carcharhinus longimanus (Poey, 1861) (South-eastern Cape and Natal)
- Dusky shark Carcharhinus obscurus (Lesueur, 1818) (Cape Point to Mozambique)
- Sandbar shark, Carcharhinus plumbeus (Nardo, 1827) (Algoa Bay to Madagascar)
- Blackspot shark, Carcharhinus sealei (Pietschmann, 1913) (Natal to Zanzibar)
- Spot-tail shark, Carcharhinus sorrah (Valenciennes, 1839) (Northern Natal to Red Sea)
- Tiger shark, Galeocerdo cuvier (Péron & Lesueur, 1822) (Port Elizabeth to Mozambique)
- Sliteye shark, Loxodon macrorhinus Müller and Henle, 1839, (Natal to Tropical Indo-West Pacific)
- Sicklefin lemon shark, Negaprion acutidens (Rüppell, 1837) (Natal and Indo-Pacific)
- Blue shark, Prionace glauca (Linnaeus, 1758) (off south-western Cape coast)
- Milk shark, Rhizoprionodon acutus (Rüppell, 1837) (Southern KwaZulu-Natal to Indo-West Pacific)
- Whitetip reef shark Triaenodon obesus (Rüppell, 1837) (Southern KwaZulu-Natal to Mozambique)
Family: Hemigaleidae
Family: Pentanchidae
- Smalleye catshark, Apristurus microps (Gilchrist, 1922) (Western Cape to Agulhas)
- Saldanha catshark, Apristurus saldanha (Barnard 1925) (Saldanha bay)
- Lined catshark or Banded catshark Halaelurus lineatus Bass, D'Aubrey & Kistnasamy, 1975 (KwaZulu-Natal to Mozambique)
- Tiger catshark Halaelurus natalensis (Regan, 1904)
- Spotted catshark, white-spotted Izak, Holohalaelurus punctatus (Gilchrist, 1914) (Natal to Mozambique)
- Izak catshark, Holohalaelurus regani (Gilchrist, 1922) (South-western Cape to Zanzibar)
Family: Proscylliidae
Family: Scyliorhinidae – Catsharks
- Swell shark, balloon shark, Cephaloscyllium sufflans (Regan, 1921) (Central KwaZulu-Natal to Gulf of Aden)
- Puffadder shyshark or Happy Eddie Haploblepharus edwardsii (Schinz, 1822) (Cape Point to central KwaZulu-Natal)
- Brown shyshark Haploblepharus fuscus Smith, 1950 (Cape Agulhas to southern KwaZulu-Natal)
- Dark shyshark, dusky shyshark or skaamoog Haploblepharus pictus (Müller & Henle, 1838) (Namibia to Cape Agulhas)
- Pyjama shark or striped catshark Poroderma africanum (Gmelin, 1789) (Cape Columbine to central KwaZulu-Natal)
- Leopard catshark Poroderma pantherinum (Müller & Henle, 1838) (Cape Columbine to Durban) also recorded as syn. blackspotted catshark Poroderma marleyi Fowler, 1933 (Port St. Johns to Natal)[24]
- Yellowspotted catshark, Scyliorhinus capensis (Müller & Henle, 1838), (South-western Cape to KwaZulu-Natal)
Family: Sphyrnidae – Hammerhead sharks
Family: Triakidae – Houndsharks
- Soupfin shark, school shark, Galeorhinus galeus (Linnaeus, 1758) (Angola to East London)
- Lesser soupfin shark, blacktip tope, Hypogaleus hyugaensis (Miyosi, 1939) (Natal to Zanzibar)
- Hardnosed smooth-hound, Arabian smooth-hound, Mustelus mosis Hemprich and Ehrenberg, 1899 (Durban to Red Sea)
- Common smooth-hound shark Mustelus mustelus (Linnaeus, 1758) (Namibia to KwaZulu-Natal)
- Whitespotted smooth-hound Mustelus palumbes Smith, 1957 (Walvis bay to Algoa bay)
- Flapnose houndshark, Scylliogaleus quecketti Boulenger, 1902 (north-eastern Cape to Natal)
- Spotted gully shark, sharptooth houndshark, Triakis megalopterus (Smith, 1839) (Walvis Bay to East London)
=Family: Echinorhinidae – Bramble sharks
=Order Hexanchiformes – Cow and frill sharks
=Family: Hexanchidae – Cow sharks
- Sharpnose sevengill shark, Heptranchias perlo Bonnaterre, 1788 (KwaZulu-Natal)
- Bluntnose sixgill shark, Hexanchus griseus (Bonnaterre, 1788) (All oceans)
- Bigeye sixgill shark, Atlantic sixgill shark, Hexanchus nakamurai Teng, 1962, recorded as syn. Hexanchus vitulus Springer and Waller, 1969 (Atlantic, south-west Indian Ocean)[25]
- Spotted sevengill cowshark or broadnose sevengill shark, Notorynchus cepedianus (Péron, 1807) (Namibia to East London)
=Order Lamniformes – Mackerel sharks
=
Family: Alopiidae – Thresher sharks
Family: Cetorhinidae – Basking sharks
Family: Lamnidae – Mackerel sharks
- Great white shark, Carcharodon carcharias (Linnaeus, 1758) (Namibia to Mozambique)[26] [27] [28] [29]
- Shortfin mako shark, Isurus oxyrinchus Rafinesque, 1810, (Warm temperate and tropical waters of all oceans)
- Porbeagle, Lamna nasus (Bonnaterre, 1788) (Temperate oceans, recorded from False Bay and possibly Knysna)
Family: Mitsukurinidae – Goblin sharks
- Goblin shark, Mitsukurina owstoni Jordan, 1898 (west of Cape Town and off Transkei coast)
Family: Odontaspididae
Family: Pseudocarchariidae – Crocodile sharks
=Family: Ginglymostomatidae
Family: Rhincodontidae – Whale sharks
- Whale shark, Rhincodon typus Smith, 1828 (Northern Natal)
Family: Stegostomatidae
- Zebra shark, Stegostoma tigrinum (Forster, 1781), recorded as syn. Stegostoma fasciatum (Hermann, 1783) (KwaZulu-Natal to Mozambique)[31] [32]
=Family: Pristiophoridae
=
Family: Centrophoridae
- Gulper shark, Centrophorus granulosus (Bloch and Schneider, 1801) (Western Cape)
- Smallfin gulper shark, Centrophorus lusitanicus Barbosa du Bocage & de Brito Capello, 1864 (Natal)
- Smallfin gulper shark, Centrophorus moluccensis Bleeker, 1860, recorded as syn. Centrophorus scalpratus McCulloch, 1915 (Natal to southern Mozambique)[33]
- Leafscale gulper shark, Centrophorus squamosus Bonnaterre, 1788 (Western Cape and Algoa Bay)
- Birdbeak dogfish, Deania calceus (Lowe, 1839), (Cape Point and Algoa Bay)
- Arrowhead dogfish, Deania profundorum (Smith and Radcliffe, 1912) (West coast and Natal)
- Longsnout dogfish, Deania quadrispinosa (McCulloch, 1915) (Northern Namibia to Southern Mozambique)
Family: Dalatiidae
Family: Somniosidae
Family: Squalidae – Dogfishes
- Black dogfish, Centroscyllium fabricii (Reinhardt, 1825) (Western Cape)
- Longnose velvet dogfish, Centroscymnus crepidater (Bocage and Capello, 1864) (Western Cape)
- Short-tail lanternshark, Etmopterus brachyurus Smith and Radcliffe, 1912 (Western Cape, Natal and southern Mozambique)
- Southern lanternshark, Etmopterus granulosus (Günther, 1880) (Cape Point)
- Blackbelly lanternshark, Etmopterus lucifer Jordan and Snyder, 1902 (off Natal)
- Smooth lanternshark, Etmopterus pusillus (Lowe, 1839) (off Natal)
- Thorny lanternshark, Etmopterus sentosus Bass, D'Aubrey and Kistnasamy, 1973 (off Natal)
- Etmopterus sp. (off south-western Cape Province, northern KwaZulu-Natal)
- Taillight shark, Euprotomicroides zantedeschia Hulley and Penrith, 1966 (West of Cape Town)
- Pygmy shark, Euprotomicrus bispinatus (Quoy and Gaimard, 1824) (all oceans)
- Longnose pygmy shark, Heteroscymnoides marleyi Fowler, 1934 (Durban)
- Flatiron shark, Angular roughshark, Oxynotus centrina (Linnaeus, 1758) (Walvis Bay to Cape Town)
- Greenland shark, Somniosus microcephalus (Schneider, 1801) (off Cape Columbine)
- Spotted spiny dogfish, Squalus acanthias Linnaeus, 1758 (South-western Cape to Port Elizabeth)
- Roughskin spiny dogfish, roughskin spurdog, Squalus asper Merrett, 1973 (Natal to north of Madagascar)
- Bluntnose spiny dogfish, shortnose spurdog, Squalus megalops (MacLeay, 1882) (Namibia to southern Mozambique)
- Longnose spiny dogfish, shortspine spurdog, Squalus mitsukurii Jordan and Fowler, 1903 (Orange river to Beira)
=Family: Squatinidae
Order Chimaeriformes
Family: Callorhinchidae – Elephantfish
Family: Chimaeridae – Chimaeras
Family: Rhinochimaeridae – Longnose chimaeras
Parvphylum Osteichthyes – Bony fishes
See article List of marine bony fishes of South Africa
Notes and References
- Myxinidae Rafinesque, 1815 . 101162 . 2023-11-03 .
- Ed. Smith, Margaret M, and Heemstra, P. Smith's sea fishes. South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity, Grahamstown. Struik publishers, Cape Town, 2003.
- Pteromylaeus bovinus (Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1817) . 105861 . 2023-11-03 .
- Manta birostris (Walbaum, 1792) . 105857 . 2023-11-03 .
- Mobula japanica (Müller & Henle, 1841) . 217432 . 2023-11-03 .
- Anacanthobatis marmorata (von Bonde & Swart, 1923) . 1016599 . 2023-11-03 .
- Cruriraja triangularis Smith, 1964 . 217387 . 2023-11-03 .
- Raja robertsi Hulley, 1970 . 299012 . 2023-11-06 .
- Raja pullopunctata Smith, 1964 . 217405 . 2023-11-06 .
- Raja springeri Wallace, 1967 . 217403 . 2023-11-06 .
- Raja wallacei Hulley, 1970 . 217402 . 2023-11-06 .
- Raja spinacidermis Barnard, 1923 . 299030 . 2023-11-06 .
- Raja confundens Hulley, 1970 . 298889 . 2023-11-03 .
- Raja caudaspinosa von Bonde & Swart, 1923 . 298879 . 2023-11-03 .
- Raja dissimilis Hulley, 1970 . 298899 . 2023-11-03 .
- Raja leopardus von Bonde & Swart, 1923 . 298954 . 2023-11-06 .
- Raja ravidula Hulley, 1970 . 299008 . 2023-11-06 .
- Pristidae Bonaparte, 1835 . 105707 . 2023-11-03 .
- Rhinobatos annulatus Müller & Henle, 184 . 213636 . 2023-11-06 .
- Rhinobatos leucospilus Norman, 1926 . 213647 . 2023-11-07 .
- Rhinobatos ocellatus Norman, 1926 . 213646 . 2023-11-07 .
- Compagno. Leonard. Phillip Heemstra . May 2007. Electrolux addisoni, a new genus and species of electric ray from the east coast of South Africa (Rajiformes: Torpedinoidei: Narkidae), with a review of torpedinoid taxonomy. Smithiana, Publications in Aquatic Biodiversity. The South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity. 7. 15–49. 1684-4130 . 8 June 2009.
- Torpedo nobiliana Bonaparte, 1835 . 157868 . 2023-11-07 .
- Poroderma marleyi Fowler, 1934 . 312920 . 2023-11-09 .
- Hexanchus vitulus Springer & Waller, 1969 . 217627 . 2023-11-07 .
- Branch, G.M. Griffiths, C.L. Branch, M.L. Beckley, L.E. Two Oceans: A guide to the marine life of southern Africa. 5th impression, David Philip, Cape Town, 2000.
- Jones, Georgina. A field guide to the marine animals of the Cape Peninsula. SURG, Cape Town, 2008.
- Zsilavecz, Guido, Coastal fishes of the Cape Peninsula and False Bay: A divers' identification guide. SURG, Cape Town, 2005.
- King, Dennis. Reef fishes and corals: East coast of southern Africa. Struik, Cape Town, 1996.
- Nebrius concolor Rüppell, 1837 . 220029 . 2023-11-07 .
- King, Dennis., and Fraser, Valda. More reef fishes and nudibranchs. Struik, Cape Town, 2001.
- Stegostoma fasciatum (Hermann, 1783) . 220032 . 2023-11-07 .
- Centrophorus scalpratus McCulloch, 1915 . 299070 . 2023-11-07 .
- Scymnorhinus licha (Bonnaterre, 1788) . 148871 . 2023-11-07 .
- Centroscymnus obscurus Vaillant, 1888 . 299088 . 2023-11-07 .