Abstract
More than 22 different species concepts have been proposed. The concepts in general reflect the philosophical outlook, particular expertise, and the groups on which the authors are working. The full‐length papers in this special issue dedicated to species concepts relative to fishes are based on presentations by the authors at the 2001 annual meeting of the American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists at University Park, Pennsylvania, USA and generated much discussion on the topic of what constitutes a species.