Fishbase for Africa
Welcome!
FishBase for Africa is a subset of FishBase with exclusively data on African fresh- and brackish water fishes. The information in this database is validated, revised and updated by the FishBase for Africa Team of the Royal Museum for Central Africa (RMCA) in Tervuren (Belgium).
Click here to enter FishBase for Africa.
The Ichthyology Unit of the RMCA has a more than a century long tradition in biodiversity studies on African fresh- and brackish water fishes. It curates by far the largest collection of African fresh- and brackish water fish species and also holds a unique library focused on the ichthyodiversity of Africa.
The RMCA is a founding member of the FishBase Consortium and has developed a comprehensive FishBase programme including:
- the provision of high quality data on African fishes to scientists and decision makers in Africa by adding and verifying information on African fresh- and brackish water fishes in FishBase and FishBase for Africa;
- an annual and comprehensive training session on the use of FishBase and the taxonomy of African fishes;
- the assessment of the conservations status of African fish species for the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™, in close collaboration with IUCN.
The development of these activities within the museum is a major instrument to directly assist in a better conservation of the African ichthyodiversity and in sustainable management of fisheries.
Latest news
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28/09/2023 The RMCA FishBase team, together with 14 alumni of the FishBase and Fish Taxonomy training, participated in the 7th PAFFA conference, which was organised from 18 to 22 September in Brazzaville, Republic of Congo. During a special FishBase day, all alumni presented their research results.
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12/09/2023 With 126 registered participants, of which 41 attended in person, and an interesting variety of talks, the FishBase and SeaLifeBase symposium, organised in the RMCA on 4 September 2023, was a succes! We thank all presenters and attendees for their presence and contributions! The book of abstracts can be downloaded here.
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21/08/2023
The July 2023 issue of the Cybium journal is entirely dedicated to the proceedings of the Symposium "30 years of FishBase, 15 years of SeaLifeBase", organised in Paris on 6 and 7 September 2021. Two publications from the RMCA FishBase Team were accepted in this special issue:
* N. Da, K. Diop, G. Djidohokpin, Y. Ndiour, A. Bolonga, J. Snoeks and T. Musschoot (2023). Length-weight and length-length relationships of 48 Senegalese freshwater fish species based on collection specimens.Cybium 47(3):259-270. https://doi.org/10.26028/cybium/2023-015
* T. Musschoot, G. Boden and J. Snoeks (2023). AfriBasins: a new framework in FishBase for the analysis of African fresh and brackish water fish distributions, with a discussion on the Congo basin fauna. Cybium 47(3):287-308. https://doi.org/10.26028/cybium/2023-024
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16/08/2023
FishBase/SeaLifeBase Symposium Second announcement
The second announcement for the upcoming FishBase and SeaLifeBase symposium is now available, including the program and registration details. The symposium is organised in a hybrid format on 4 September 2023 at the Royal Museum for Central Africa. |
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10/07/2023
FishBase/SeaLifeBase Symposium First announcement
On 4 September 2023 the Royal Museum for Central Africa organises a FishBase/SeaLifeBase symposium, dedicated this year to topics related to fish and aquatic databases. This symposium is traditionally part of the annual meeting of the FishBase Consortium.
Scientists from within and outside the consortium will present results on a wide range of studies. A tentative list of confirmed international speakers is included in the first announcement.
The symposium will be organised in a hybrid format, which allows participants to attend remotely/online. Registration details will be communicated in the second announcement early August.
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30/06/2023 After the succesful HIPE project (Human impacts on ecosystem health and resources of Lake Edward), the ichthyology team of the Museum continued their research on the fishes of the region within the KEAFish project (The biodiversity, biogeography and evolutionary history of the northern basins of the Great African Lakes: the enigmatic fish faunas of Lakes Kivu, Edward and Albert revisited). You can find more information at https://keafish.africamuseum.be
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30/06/2023
Appel à candidature
Vous trouvez ici un appel pour le Stage «FishBase et la taxinomie des poissons africains» qui sera organisé par le Laboratoire d'Hydrobiologie et d'Aquaculture de la Faculté des Sciences Agronomiques de l'Université d'Abomey-Calavi du Bénin en 2023. Ce stage délocalisé est organisé avec l'appui des scientifiques du Département de Biologie – unité d’ichtyologie du Musée royal de l’Afrique centrale et le soutien financier de la Coopération au développement Belge.
Dates de la formation: 20/11/2023 – 27/11/2023
Lieu de la formation: Laboratoire d'Hydrobiologie et d'Aquaculture – Abomey-Calavi - Bénin
Nombre de bourses disponibles: 25
Date limite de dépôt des candidatures: 30/08/2023
Les candidats doivent être originaires et résider dans l'un des pays suivants: Bénin, Burkina-Faso, Mali, Niger, Togo.
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07/06/2023 The website for the seventh International Conference of the PanAfrican Fish and Fisheries Association, which will be held from 18-22 September 2023 in Brazzaville (Republic of the Congo), is now available: https://paffa-cg.com
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05/05/2023 The second announcement of the seventh International Conference of the PanAfrican Fish and Fisheries Association, which will be held from 18-22 September 2023 in Brazzaville (Republic of the Congo), is now available. Click here for the English or French version.
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09/03/2023 Daniel Pauly, ocean fisheries expert and one of the "founding fathers" of FishBase, together with economist Rashid Sumaila, was awarded the 2023 Tyler Prize for Environmental Achievement, often described as the ‘Nobel Prize for the Environment’. See this link for details.
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22/12/2022
Seventh International Conference of the PanAfrican “African Fish and Fisheries:
Venue: the conference will be held on the premises of the University of Marien Ngouabi, Brazzaville (Republic of the Congo). Date: 18-22 September 2023.
The PAFFA conference is by far the largest one for scientists studying African fishes and many renowned scientists, young researchers and other stakeholders are expected to attend this important meeting. More information on the conference can be found in the first circular of the conference (available in English and French). |
