Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Jul 31, 2026

Chiloglanis

Chiloglanis is a genus of upside-down catfishes native to Africa. These species have modified lips and barbels that form a suckermouth. They also have a naked (scaleless) body. Sexual dimorphism has been reported in Chiloglanis. The adult males of many of these species have elongate anal and caudal fins. Also, males may have an enlarged humeral process.

Last revised
Jul 31, 2026
Read time
≈ 3 min
Length
739 w
Citations
12
Source
Chiloglanis
Chiloglanis sp.
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Siluriformes
Family: Mochokidae
Genus: Chiloglanis
W. K. H. Peters, 1868
Type species
Chiloglanis deckenii
Peters, 1868

Chiloglanis is a genus of upside-down catfishes native to Africa.1 These species have modified lips and barbels that form a suckermouth.2 They also have a naked (scaleless) body.3 Sexual dimorphism has been reported in Chiloglanis. The adult males of many of these species have elongate anal and caudal fins. Also, males may have an enlarged humeral process.4

Species

There are currently 70 recognized species in this genus:5

References

References

  1. Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.). "Species in genus Chiloglanis". FishBase. December 2011 version.
  2. Nelson, J.S. (2006). Fishes of the World. John Wiley & Sons, Inc. ISBN 0-471-25031-7.
  3. Ng, H.H.; Bailey, R.M. (2006). "Chiloglanis productus, a new species of suckermouth catfish (Siluriformes: Mochokidae) from Zambia". Occasional Papers of the University of Michigan Museum of Zoology. 738: 1–13.
  4. Friel, J.P.; Vigliotta, T.R. (2006). "Synodontis acanthoperca, a new species from the Ogôoué River system, Gabon with comments on spiny ornamentation and sexual dimorphism in mochokid catfishes (Siluriformes: Mochokidae)" (PDF). Zootaxa. 1125: 45–56. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.1125.1.3.
  5. Fricke, Ron; Eschmeyer, William N. & van der Laan, Richard (eds.). "Species in the genus Chiloglanis". Catalog of Fishes. California Academy of Sciences. Retrieved 25 October 2025.
  6. Schmidt, R.C.; Bart, H.L.Jr.; Nyingi, D.W. (2015). "Two new species of African suckermouth catfishes, genus Chiloglanis (Siluriformes: Mochokidae), from Kenya with remarks on other taxa from the area". Zootaxa. 4044 (1): 45–64. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.4044.1.2. PMID 26624701.
  7. Friel, J.P.; Vigliotta, T.R. (2011). "Three new species of African suckermouth catfishes, genus Chiloglanis (Siluriformes: Mochokidae), from the lower Malagarasi and Luiche rivers of western Tanzania" (PDF). Zootaxa. 3063: 1–21. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.3063.1.1.
  8. Schmidt, R.C.; Barrientos, C. (2019). "A new species of suckermouth catfish (Mochokidae: Chiloglanis) from the Rio Mongo in Equatorial Guinea". Zootaxa. 4652 (3): 507–519. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.4652.3.7. PMID 31716859.