Lates

Lates
Temporal range: 40.4–0 Ma[1] Eocene to present[2]
Barramundi (L. calcarifer) displaying eyeshine
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Carangiformes
Family: Latidae
Genus: Lates
G. Cuvier, 1828
Type species
Lates niloticus
Linnaeus, 1758[3]
Synonyms[4]
  • Luciolates Boulenger, 1914
  • Pseudolates Alleyne & W. J. Macleay, 1877

Lates is a genus of freshwater and euryhaline lates perches belonging to the family Latidae. The generic name is also used as a common name, lates, for many of the species.[5]

All species are predatory, and the Nile perch (L. niloticus), in particular, has become infamous as an invasive species introduced into the East African Lake Victoria, where many native Haplochromines were driven extinct. In contrast to the widespread Barramundi and Nile perch (though the fish does face threats from human activity), several members of the genus Lates with relatively restricted African or Asian distributions are themselves considered threatened.

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference aa was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Murray, A.M., Attia, Y.S. A new species of Lates (Teleostei: Perciformes) from the Lower Oligocene of Egypt, Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, 2004, 24(2):299–308
  3. ^ Eschmeyer, William N.; Fricke, Ron & van der Laan, Richard (eds.). "Lates". Catalog of Fishes. California Academy of Sciences. Retrieved 22 February 2020.
  4. ^ Eschmeyer, William N.; Fricke, Ron & van der Laan, Richard (eds.). "Genera in the family Latidae". Catalog of Fishes. California Academy of Sciences. Retrieved 22 February 2020.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference FishBase was invoked but never defined (see the help page).