Standard Japanese names for the species group of the genus Anguilla (Teleostei: Elopomorpha: Anguillidae)

Abstract

Serious concern about the declining populations of the genus Anguilla and increasing related socioeconomic activities worldwide have led to a rise in the use of unauthorized Japanese names for members of this genus in various fields, as well as in academia. Therefore, it became important to clarify the standard Japanese names of all valid species and subspecies in the genus. Existing standard Japanese names for Anguilla species and subspecies were assessed, and new names proposed for some members, based on their geographical distribution and morphological characteristics, according to the nomenclature guidelines for standard Japanese fish names formulated by the Ichthyological Society of Japan in 2020. Standard Japanese names of three Japanese species and one subspecies were adopted from already-established names (Anguilla japonica, Nihonunagi; A. marmorata, Ō-unagi; A. bicolor pacifica, Nyūginia-unagi; A. luzonensis, Ugumaunagi); two Atlantic species were redefined (A. anguilla, Yōroppa-unagi; A. rostrata, Amerika-unagi); and the remaining eleven species and five subspecies were newly named (A. bicolor, Baikara-unagi; A. bicolor bicolor, Indo-baikara-unagi; A. dieffenbachii, Nyūjīrandoō-unagi; A. australis, Ōsutoraria-unagi; A. australis australis, Ōsutoraria-syōtofin-unagi; A. australis schmidtii, Nyūjīrando-syōtofin-unagi; A. reinhardtii, Ōsutoraria-rongufin-unagi; A. celebesensis, Serebesu-unagi; A. borneensis, Boruneo-unagi; A. interioris, Interia-unagi; A. megastoma, Porineshia-rongufin unagi; A. obscura, Porineshia-syōtofin-unagi; A. bengalensis, Bengaru-unagi; A. bengalensis bengalensis, Indo-bengaru-unagi; A. bengalensis labiata, Afurika-bengaru-unagi; A. mossambica, Mozanbīku-unagi).