F.L. de Castelnau's collection of fishes from the Cape of Good Hope described by Pieter Bleeker.

The Dutch ichthyologist Pieter Bleeker described 34 species, including a new genus and five new species from a collection of fishes sent to him from the Cape of Good Hope by the French explorer, naturalist and diplomat, F.L. de Castelnau in 1858. A careful search of the Naturalis collection in Leiden found almost all the specimens received by Bleeker from Castelnau, including hitherto unrecognised types. Based on examination of this collection and a critical translation of Bleeker's 1859 paper on the fishes of the Cape of Good Hope it has been possible to resolve the taxonomic status of Bleeker's genus Pagrichthys (Pagrichthys castelnaui Bleeker, 1859, type by monotypy), previously considered a synonym of Sparus Linnaeus, 1758 but here regarded as a synonym of Lithognathus Swainson, 1839. The identity of the various species described by Bleeker, and type status of his new species are clarified: Cantharus castelnaui Bleeker, 1859 is a synonym of Pachymetopon blochii (Valenciennes, 1830); Pagrichthys castelnaui Bleeker, 1859 is a synonym of Lithognathus lithognathus (Cuvier, 1829); Seriola capensis Bleeker, 1859 (not previously recognised as a valid species) is a synonym of Seriola lalandi Valenciennes, 1833; Clinus dubuis Bleeker, 1859 (based on a misspelling of Castelnau's ms name dubius) is a valid name, and a synonym of Clinus superciliosus (Linnaeus, 1758); and Clinus dorsalis Bleeker, 1859 is valid as Muraenoclinus dorsalis (Bleeker, 1859).

Redescription of Ateleopus japonicus Bleeker 1853, a senior synonym of Ateleopus schlegelii van der Hoeven 1855, Ateleopus purpureus Tanaka 1915, and Ateleopus tanabensis Tanaka 1918 with designation of a lectotype for A. japonicus and A. schlegelii (Ateleopodiformes: Ateleopodidae).

Three nominal species of Ateleopodidae; Ateleopus japonicus Bleeker 1853, A. purpureus Tanaka 1915, and A. tanabensis Tanaka 1918, were taxonomically reviewed. Examination of many specimens, including the holotype of A. tanabensis and the newly designated lectotype of A. japonicus and A. schlegelii, revealed that their morphological differences can be explained by intraspecific variation and ontogenetic change within one species. Mitochondrial DNA analyses supported the results of the morphological study. Thus, A. purpureus and A. tanabensis are considered junior synonyms of A. japonicus. We have concluded after an examination of the relevant publications that Ateleopus schlegelii van der Hoeven 1855 is also a junior synonym of A. japonicus.

Two new species of zooplanktivorous haplochromine cichlids from Lake Victoria, Tanzania.

Two new species of zooplanktivorous haplochromine cichlids from Lake Victoria, Tanzania, are described and illustrated. These species closely resemble each other. Their affinities to other zooplanktivorous haplochromines from Lake Victoria are discussed. Haplochromis argens sp. n., which featured under nicknames (mainly Haplochromis "argens") in more than 50 papers, was caught both in the Mwanza Gulf and the Emin Pasha Gulf, whereas Haplochromis goldschmidti sp. n. was only found in the Emin Pasha Gulf. Of the latter species only males are available, but it seems unlikely that it represents a case of male colour polymorphism as several presumably unrelated characters differ in sympatry between the two species, suggesting that there is no gene flow. Statistical analysis revealed that the overall difference between the two species is greater than that between the populations from the two locations. Body depth of the two species in sympatry in the Emin Pasha Gulf was more similar than that of Haplochromis goldschmidti sp. n. and the allopatric population of Haplochromis argens sp. n. from the Mwanza Gulf,which mayindicate an overall environmental effect. However, several measurements related to the width of snout and mouth differed more between the populations of the two species in sympatry than between the allopatric populations. In contrast to a group of zooplanktivorous species that recovered successfully after environmental changes in the lake, Haplochromis argens sp. n. is among a group that became extremely rare and probably is in danger of extinction; the conservation status of Haplochromis goldschmidti sp. n. is currently unknown.

Putative type specimens of Satyrichthys (Scorpaeniformes: Peristediidae) in the Bleeker collection of the Naturalis Biodiversity Center, Leiden, The Netherlands.

The presumed type status of the two remaining specimens of Peristedion moluccense Bleeker 1850 in the collection the Naturalis Biodiversity Center was examined by comparing them to descriptions in two Bleeker papers and an unpublished manuscript by Bleeker written for the Atlas Ichthyologique. Latin, French and Dutch parts of these papers were translated into English. The Dutch description of P. laticeps Schlegel 1852 was also translated. In the course of this study it became clear why Bleeker considered P. laticeps, a as a synonym of P. moluccense.

The types of Osteoglossum formosum Müller & Schlegel, 1840 (Teleostei, Osteoglossidae).

The designation of a neotype for Scleropages formosus (Müller & Schlegel, 1840) by Pouyaud et al. (2003) triggered a search for the type specimens of the species, which were found in the collections of the Naturalis Biodiversity Center, Leiden (RMNH) and the Natural History Museum, London (BM(NH)). The publication date of the species is corrected. Moreover, detailed data on the day of capture and the type locality were uncovered. An English translation of the major part of the original Dutch description is provided, and a number of neglected colour descriptions and figures of S.formosus are discussed. Lastly, a lectotype is designated.