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List of Freshwater Fishes reported from Papua New Guinea
n = 366
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Table 1: 357 species currently present in the country/island (endemic, native, introduced, reintroduced);
Table 2: 6 species possibly present in the country/island (stray, questionable);
Table 3: 3 species demonstrated to be absent in the country/island (extirpated, not established, misidentification, error).
Table 4: 366 species reported from the country/island altogether.
Table : 366 .
     
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Family Species Author Info Occurrence Common names Abundance Max length Maturity Remark Photo
Eleotridae Allomogurnda flavimarginata Allen, 2003 Fr native   6.10 cm SL male/unsexed  Found only in the vinicity of Bulolo and Wau (Ref. 77038). 
Eleotridae Allomogurnda hoesei Allen, 2003 Fr native   7.80 cm SL male/unsexed  Known only from a single collection taken in 1968 near the village of Ialibu, Southern Highlands Province (Ref. 77038). 
Eleotridae Allomogurnda insularis Allen, 2003 Fr native   5.47 cm SL male/unsexed  Found only in two streams on the Goodenough Island in the D'Entrecasteaux Islands of eastern Papu New Guinea (Ref. 77038). 
Eleotridae Allomogurnda landfordorum Allen, 2003 Fr native   5.85 cm SL male/unsexed  Known only from two ares in southern drainages of Papua New Guinea, separated by a distance of approximately 240 km. Fish samples were collected from a small spring next to the Lubu River of the Kikori River system, located in hilly terrain, approximately 150 km upstream from the mouth of the Kikori River at an elevation of about 600 m (Ref. 77038). 
Eleotridae Allomogurnda montana Allen, 2003 Fr native   6.10 cm SL male/unsexed  Presently known only from the upper Awaetowa River on Fergusson Island in the D' Entrecasteaux Islands of eastern Papau New Guinea (Ref. 77038). 
Eleotridae Allomogurnda multicincta Allen & Hoese, 2017 Fr native   3.60 cm SL male/unsexed  Type locality of Allomogurnda multicincta, East Sepik Province, about 17 km east of Maprik Village on Wewak-Lumi Road, Malas Creek. Known only from East Sepik Province, where it was collected in a small tributary (Malas Creek) of the Amuk River (tributary of the Screw River, one of the major northern tributaries of the Middle Sepik River drainage), located about 17 km east of Maprik Village via the Wewak-Lumi Road. The type locality is located at the edge of the foothills of the Prince Alexander Mountains, elevation of about 150 m above sea level and lies approximately 455 km upstream from the Pacific Ocean (Ref. 116997).  No picture yet.
Eleotridae Allomogurnda nesolepis (Weber, 1907) Fr native  common (usually seen) 4.60 cm SL male/unsexed  Known from Markham, Gogol, Ramu and Sepik river systems. Also found in numerous small, independent coastal drainages between these rivers. Also Ref. 6771, 13533. 
Eleotridae Allomogurnda papua Allen, 2003 Fr native   11.70 cm SL male/unsexed  Occurs in eastern Papua New Guinea from the Huon Gulf near Lae to the Laloki River system near Port Moresby (Ref. 77038). Found both in lowland streams near the coast and well inland to elevations of about 500 m in Sogeri Plateau near Port Moresby and Kokoda vicinity (Ref. 77038). 
Ambassidae Ambassis agrammus Günther, 1867 Fr native  Pale river perchlet (English)  7.50 cm SL male/unsexed 3 SL Recorded from Bensbach and Fly-Strickland river systems. Found also in Daru Island. Also Ref. 5259, 6192, 6771, 7300,13533, 50786, 75154. 
Ambassidae Ambassis interrupta Bleeker, 1853 Fr, Br, M native  Perchlet (English), Glassfish (English), Long-spined perchlet (English) common (usually seen) 12.00 cm TL male/unsexed 7 SL Known from Wewak, Manus Island, Madang and from the lower Sepik, Ramu, Fly and Oriomo rivers. Common in the lower section of the Sepik River and occurs as far upstream as Pagwi, about 200 km from the river mouth (Ref. 7242). Also Ref. 6192, 13533. 
Ambassidae Ambassis macleayi (Castelnau, 1878) Fr native  Macleay's perchlet (English)  9.00 cm SL male/unsexed 3 SL Known from Bensbach, Middle Fly and lower Strickland (including Lake Murray) rivers, and also from the Balimo area. Also Ref. 6192, 13533, 75154. 
Ambassidae Ambassis macracanthus Bleeker, 1849 Fr, Br native  Estuarine perchlet (English)  10.50 cm SL male/unsexed  Known only from Madang. Also Ref. 1601 and 6192. 
Ambassidae Ambassis miops Günther, 1872 Fr, Br native  Flag-tailed perchlet (English)  10.30 cm TL male/unsexed  Known from Vailala Creek (near Port Moresby), streams near Bogia, Lorengau River on Manus Island and near Kavieng, New Ireland. Also Ref. 6192 and 7050. 
Ambassidae Ambassis nalua (Hamilton, 1822) Fr native  Scalloped perchlet (English)  12.50 cm TL male/unsexed  In range Ref. 7050. 
Ambassidae Ambassis urotaenia Bleeker, 1852 Fr, Br, M native   14.00 cm TL male/unsexed   
Ambassidae Ambassis vachellii Richardson, 1846 Fr, Br, M native   6.50 cm SL male/unsexed   
Terapontidae Amniataba affinis (Mees & Kailola, 1977) Fr endemic   15.00 cm SL male/unsexed  Thus far known only from the Fly, Morehead and Bensbach river systems. Widespread in the Fly system, occurring in the lowland, swampy parts of the river as far upstream as the Ok Mart River near Rumginae (about 870 km upstream from the sea). Also Ref. 6192, 13533.  No picture yet.
Anabantidae Anabas testudineus (Bloch, 1792) Fr introduced  Climbing perch (English)  25.00 cm TL male/unsexed  Established in Sepik area (Ref. 6993) and in the extreme southwest corner of the country (Ref. 50786). Also Ref. 9420. 
Anguillidae Anguilla bicolor McClelland, 1844 Fr, Br, M native  Indian short-finned eel (English)  123 cm TL male/unsexed  Known from northern river systems, particularly the Sepik and Ramu (Ref. 2847). Also Ref. 6993, 13533, 129076. 
Anguillidae Anguilla interioris Whitley, 1938 Fr native  New Guinea eel (English), Highlands long-finned eel (English)  80.00 cm TL male/unsexed   
Anguillidae Anguilla marmorata Quoy & Gaimard, 1824 Fr, Br, M native  Giant long-finned eel (English)  70.00 cm TL male/unsexed ;200 cm TL female  Known from the streams of south-eastern Papua New Guinea near Port Moresby (Ref. 2847); and Sepik-Ramu river (Ref. 13533). Also Ref. 6993, 13533. 
Anguillidae Anguilla megastoma Kaup, 1856 Fr native  Pacific long-finned eel (English)  100.00 cm TL male/unsexed ;165 cm SL female  Recorded from streams of Popondetta and Kairiru Island, just northwest of Wewak. Also Ref. 6993. 
Anguillidae Anguilla obscura Günther, 1872 Fr, Br, M native  Pacific short-finned eel (English)  110 cm TL male/unsexed  Known from the Port Moresby region, Embi Lakes near Popondetta, Madang area, Sepik River (Ref. 2847); and Fly river (Ref. 13533). Also Ref. 6993, 75154. 
Anguillidae Anguilla reinhardtii Steindachner, 1867 Fr, Br, M native   165 cm TL male/unsexed ;158 cm TL female  Known from Dinawa (Upper Saint Joseph River, Gulf of Papua drainage) (Ref. 2847); and Fly river (Ref. 13533). Also Ref. 6993. 
Hemiramphidae Arrhamphus sclerolepis Günther, 1866 Fr, Br, M native  Snub-nosed garfish (English) abundant (always seen in some numbers) 36.00 cm SL male/unsexed  Reported from the Daru area, Galley reach and Port Moresby. Widespread along the Papuan coast. Occurs near the mouth of the Fly River (Ref. 13533). Also Ref. 9843, 75154. 
Gobiidae Awaous acritosus Watson, 1994 Fr native   18.00 cm SL male/unsexed    No picture yet.
Gobiidae Awaous guamensis (Valenciennes, 1837) Fr native   24.51 cm SL male/unsexed ;16.53 cm female   
Gobiidae Awaous melanocephalus (Bleeker, 1849) Fr native   15.00 cm TL male/unsexed  Recorded from streams of northern Papua New Guinea between Lae and Madang. 
Eleotridae Belobranchus belobranchus (Valenciennes, 1837) Fr, Br native  Throat-spine gudgeon (English)  19.50 cm TL male/unsexed  Also Ref. 6771, 7050, 1601.  No picture yet.
Oxudercidae Boleophthalmus boddarti (Pallas, 1770) Fr, Br, M native  Boddart's goggle-eyed goby (English)  22.00 cm TL male/unsexed   
Oxudercidae Boleophthalmus caeruleomaculatus McCulloch & Waite, 1918 Fr questionable   16.50 cm SL male/unsexed  Reported occurrence in Ref. 6771 needs furtehr confirmation (Ref. 75154). 
Butidae Bostrychus strigogenys Nichols, 1937 Fr native  Striped-cheek gudgeon (English)  18.30 cm SL male/unsexed  Known from the upper Fly and Ok Tedi rivers (Ref. 2847). Also Ref. 6771, 13533.  No picture yet.
Butidae Bostrychus zonatus Weber, 1907 Fr, Br native   18.50 cm SL male/unsexed  Recorded from Mari Creek and Tais village (near Daru), western Papua. 
Soleidae Brachirus villosus (Weber, 1907) Fr native  Velvety sole (English)  10.50 cm SL male/unsexed  Occurs in the Fly River, penetrating well upstream at least 900 km from the mouth. Also Ref. 6771, 13533.  No picture yet.
Gobiidae Brachyamblyopus brachysoma (Bleeker, 1854) Fr, Br native   10.50 cm TL male/unsexed  Recorded from Empress Augusta Bay, Bougainville. Also from Ref. 92840.  No picture yet.
Ariidae Brustiarius nox (Herre, 1935) Fr, Fi endemic  Comb-gilled catfish (English) abundant (always seen in some numbers) 30.00 cm SL male/unsexed 16 SL Found in the lower and middle Sepik and Ramu river systems. Also Ref. 6993, 13533.  No picture yet.
Ariidae Brustiarius solidus (Herre, 1935) Fr, Fi native  Hard-plate catfish (English), Kanganaman catfish (English) fairly common (chances are about 50%) 60.00 cm SL male/unsexed 20 SL Known from the lower and middle Ramu and Sepik river sytems. Also Ref. 6771, 6993, 9233, 13533.  No picture yet.
Eleotridae Bunaka gyrinoides (Bleeker, 1853) Fr native  Green-backed gauvina (English)  34.00 cm SL male/unsexed  Known from Gogol and Ramu river systems. Also occurs in the Admiralty Is. and Sepik-Ramu river (Ref. 13533). Also Ref. 6771. 
Butidae Butis amboinensis (Bleeker, 1853) Fr, Br, M native  Olive flathead-gudgeon (English)  14.00 cm SL male/unsexed  In the Sepik River it has been captured 300 km upstream from the sea; also known from Ramu river (Ref. 13533). 
Butidae Butis butis (Hamilton, 1822) Fr, Br native  Crimson-tipped gudgeon (English)  15.00 cm TL male/unsexed  Known from Fly river (Ref. 13533). Also Ref. 6771. 
Butidae Butis melanostigma (Bleeker, 1849) Fr, Br native   18.00 cm TL male/unsexed  Also Ref. 1601. Occurrence questionable (Ref. 6771). 
Gobiidae Caragobius urolepis (Bleeker, 1852) Fr, Br native   8.50 cm SL male/unsexed  Recorded from the Ramu, Fly and Oriomo rivers (Ref. 2847). Also recorded from the Sepik and Rau R. systems (Ref. 6771). Also Ref. 13533. 
Carangidae Caranx sexfasciatus Quoy & Gaimard, 1825 Fr, Br, M, Fi native  Bigeye trevally (English), Babakulan (Creole, English), Dan-Dau (Creole, English), Muslo (Creole, English), Pinkit (Creole, English), Simbad (Creole, English), Great trevally (English), Tupatupa (Misima-Paneati)  120 cm TL male/unsexed  Adults are strictly marine inhabitants. Juveniles occur in brackish mangrove estuaries and sometimes enter rivers, penetrating well inland, for example 200-300 km up the Sepik River (Ref. 2847) and Ramu river (Ref. 13533); known from Kimbe bay (Ref. 28888). Also Ref. 3280 and 6192. 
Carcharhinidae Carcharhinus leucas (Valenciennes, 1839) Fr, Br, M native  Bull shark (English)  360 cm TL male/unsexed ;400 cm TL female  Recorded from the Papuan coast (Ref. 6993). Freshwater localities include Sepik, Ramu (Ref. 2847) and Fly rivers (Ref. 13533). Also Ref. 6993, 9997, 50786. 
Mugilidae Cestraeus goldiei (Macleay, 1883) Fr, Br native   40.00 cm FL male/unsexed  Mostly recorded from Port Moresby district. Also Ref. 9812. 
Mugilidae Cestraeus plicatilis Valenciennes, 1836 Fr, Br native  Goldie river mullet (English)  32.50 cm TL male/unsexed   
Channidae Channa striata (Bloch, 1793) Fr introduced   100.00 cm SL male/unsexed  Two specimens observed by G. Hitchcock in August 2000 at Balamuk and Wando villagers (Ref. 50786). 
Chanidae Chanos chanos (Fabricius, 1775) Fr, Br, M, Fi native   180 cm SL male/unsexed ;124 cm SL female  Known from Kimbe bay (Ref. 28888) and Sepik-Ramu river (Ref. 13533). Also Ref. 49, 6993, 28888. 
Melanotaeniidae Chilatherina axelrodi Allen, 1979 Fr endemic  Axelrod's rainbowfish (English)  7.00 cm SL male/unsexed  Known only from Yungkiri Stream, a tributary of the Pual River, in the Bewani Mountains, about 37 km southwest of Vanimo. Also Ref. 6993.  No picture yet.
Melanotaeniidae Chilatherina bulolo (Whitley, 1938) Fr endemic   7.00 cm SL male/unsexed  Known from scattered localities in the Markham (Erap Snake and Bulolo rivers), Ramu (Whege River) (Ref. 2847, 6771) and Sepik River systems (Ref. 13533).  No picture yet.
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