The validity of Lates maliensis Gayet, 1983, described from Holocene deposits of the Malian Sahara, is disputed. The majority of the features that characterise L. maliensis were also observed in a sample of 18 recent L. niloticus specimens from the Nile and Niger basins. Some characteristics of L. maliensis seem to hold, but closer examination of these features demonstrates that partial destruction of certain L. niloticus bony elements can give them a L. maliensis appearance. Therefore L. maliensis Gayet, 1983 is considered to be a synonym of L. niloticus (Linnaeus, 1758).