Tilapia (genus)

This article is about the genus Tilapia. For species commonly referred to as "tilapia", see Tilapia.
Tilapia
Banded tilapia, Tilapia sparrmanii
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Perciformes
Family: Cichlidae
Subfamily: Pseudocrenilabrinae
Tribe: Tilapiini
Genus: Tilapia
A. Smith, 1840
Type species
Tilapia sparrmanii
A. Smith, 1840
Species

4, see text

Synonyms

Chromis Günther, 1862 (non Cuvier, 1814: preoccupied)

Tilapia is a genus of cichlid fishes endemic to freshwater habitats in Southern Africa. In the past this was a very large genus including all species with the common name tilapia, but today the vast majority are placed in other genera.[1]

Species and taxonomy

In the past, Oreochromis and Sarotherodon were retained in the genus Tilapia, but these are treated as separate genera by all recent authorities.[2] Even with this more restricted Tilapia, there were indications that the taxonomic treatment was problematic, and in 2013 a review of the group resulted in the removal of most "Tilapia" species to the genera Coelotilapia, Coptodon, Heterotilapia, Paracoptodon and Pelmatolapia.[1] With these as separate genera, only four species remain in Tilapia:[1]

Temporarily retained here, but belonging elsewhere:[1]

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Tilapia.
  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Dunz, A.R., and Schliewen, U.K. (2013). Molecular phylogeny and revised classification of the haplotilapiine cichlid fishes formerly referred to as “Tilapia”. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, online 29 March 2013. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2013.03.015
  2. Nagl, S.; Tichy, H.; Mayer, W.E.; Samonte, I.E.; McAndrew, B.J., and Klein, J. (2001). Classification and Phylogenetic Relationships of African Tilapiine Fishes Inferred from Mitochondrial DNA Sequences. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 20(3): 361–374. doi:10.1006/mpev.2001.0979