Previously, it was believed that N. pulcher and N. brichardi were two distinct species. Now they are considered the same species, the only difference being that Neolamprologus brichardi has a black stripe running from its eye to its gill cover and a yellow spot just above it, both of which are absent in N. pulcher. Because Neolamprologus pulcher is the older of the two scientific names, the rules of scientific nomenclature would make this the correct name for the species. The daffodil cichlid, when it was still known as N. brichardi, was named after Pierre Brichard, a Belgian who set up a collection station, for the export of Tanganyikan cichlids in 1971, named "Fishes of Burundi."
