haha awesome discussion. I agree with everything Hao has said. Importing these suckers wild, there are countless variations each depending on the locale. Moreover, even if they are a subspecies, or an entire different species, there are no prominent ichthyologists like there were back in the day to properly take the time to research and describe each new species. Asian countries like China, Japan, and recently Korea are the main players in the Poly game and this creates new cultures, with the same fish possessing different names depending on the country of export. As Hao said, its about the money and people with the passion for the field.
One thing is for sure: The Bichir world is getting bigger, and we are discovering countless other Polypterus straying away from the orthodox enldi, pbb, ect. I hear rumors from the field of collecting Polypterus no one has even seen before; a fish which resembles nothing like we have ever discovered. The waters of Africa are relatively undiscovered compared to other continents mainly due to the lack of industrialization. This is good in part because pollution doesnt touch the fish, but at the same time, it makes research so damn hard.
