Hydrocynus is a fish genus

Genus

In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...

 in the family Alestidae, a family from the order Characiformes

Characiformes

The Characiformes are an order of ray-finned fish, comprising the characins and their allies. Grouped in 18 recognized families, there are a few thousand different species, including the well-known piranha and tetras.-Taxonomy:...

, endemic to the African continent. The name is derived from the Greek

Greek language

Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...

 hydro ("water") + kyon ("dog"). The genus contains six species, all popularly known as "African Tigerfish

Tigerfish

Tigerfish is the common name for a variety of species from several different families of fish, usually on account of their colouration or otherwise fearsome appearance and teeth.- Alestiidae :...

" for their fierce predatory behavior and other characteristics that make them excellent game fish

Game fish

Game fish are fish pursued for sport by recreational anglers. They can be freshwater or marine fish. Game fish can be eaten after being caught, though increasingly anglers practise catch and release to improve fish populations. Some game fish are also targeted commercially, particularly...

.

Species

• Hydrocynus brevis (Günther, 1864) (Tiger-fish)
• Hydrocynus forskahlii (G. Cuvier
  Georges Cuvier
  Georges Chrétien Léopold Dagobert Cuvier or Jean Léopold Nicolas Frédéric Cuvier , known as Georges Cuvier, was a French naturalist and zoologist...
  
  , 1819) (Elongate tigerfish)
• Hydrocynus goliath
  Hydrocynus goliath
  Hydrocynus goliath, also known as the goliath tigerfish, giant tigerfish or mbenga, is a very large African fish from the Congo River Basin, Lualaba River, Lake Upemba, and Lake Tanganyika. This large-toothed, highly predatory fish grows to a length of and a weight of .A number of incidents have...
  
  Boulenger
  George Albert Boulenger
  George Albert Boulenger FRS was a Belgian-British zoologist who identified over 2000 new animal species, chiefly fish, reptiles and amphibians.-Life:...
  
  , 1898 (Giant tigerfish)
• Hydrocynus somonorum (Daget, 1954)
• Hydrocynus tanzaniae B. Brewster, 1986
• Hydrocynus vittatus Castelnau, 1861 (Tiger fish)