The northern cavefish or northern blindfish is found in caves through Kentucky and southern Indiana. It is under review for possible listing under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 in the United States as of 2023, and the IUCN lists the species as near threatened.
The Mexican tetra, also known as the blind cave fish, blind cave characin, and blind cave tetra, is a freshwater fish of the family Characidae of the order Characiformes. The type species of its genus, it is native to the Nearctic realm, originating in the lower Rio Grande and the Neueces and Pecos Rivers in Texas, as well as the central and eastern parts of Mexico.
The Percopsiformes are a small order of ray-finned fishes, comprising the trout-perch and its allies. It contains just ten extant species, grouped into seven genera and three families. Five of these genera are monotypic.
The Ozark cavefish, Amblyopsis rosae, is a small subterranean freshwater fish endemic to the United States. It has been listed as a threatened species in the US since 1984; the IUCN currently lists the species as Near Threatened, though it was previously listed as Vulnerable between 1986 and 1996. It is listed as Endangered and Threatened by the Missouri Department of Conservation.
The pirate perch is a freshwater fish that commonly inhabits coastal waters along the east coast of the United States and the backwater areas of the Mississippi Valley. This species is often found towards the bottom of clear, warm water habitats with low currents. These fish are normally solitary, carnivorous, and nocturnal. The pirate perch is known to consume live mosquito larva, amphipods, glass shrimp, meal worms, small fish, dragonfly and stonefly larvae, and earthworms.
The Alabama cavefish is a critically endangered species of amblyopsid cavefish found only in underground pools in Key Cave, located in northwestern Alabama, United States in the Key Cave National Wildlife Refuge. It was discovered underneath a colony of gray bats in 1967 by researchers Robert A. Kuehne and John E. Cooper and scientifically described in 1974.
The lollipop catshark is a little-known species of deep sea catshark, belonging to the family Scyliorhinidae, and the only described member of its genus. A diminutive, bottom-dwelling shark of the outer continental shelf and upper continental slope, this species can be readily identified by its tadpole-like shape with a greatly expanded, rounded head and narrow body. The large head houses expanded gills, which are thought to be an adaptation for hypoxic conditions. This shark preys on crustaceans and fishes. Reproduction is aplacental viviparous, with females retaining egg cases internally two at a time until they hatch. There is no fishery interest in this species.
Pelvicachromis pulcher is a freshwater fish of the cichlid family, endemic to Nigeria and Cameroon. It is popular amongst aquarium hobbyists, and is most commonly sold under the name kribensis, although it has other common names, including various derivatives and color morphs of the kribensis: krib, common krib, red krib, super-red krib and rainbow krib, along with rainbow cichlid and purple cichlid.
The spring cavefish is the only member of the genus Forbesichthys and is one of seven species in the family Amblyopsidae. This species is listed as state endangered in Missouri, but it is considered to be of least concern by the IUCN Red List due to its relatively large population size and number of subpopulations. The spring cavefish inhabits caves, springs, spring runs, and spring seeps. It is subterranean, emerging at dusk and retreating underground an hour or two before dawn. The species is located within areas of the central and southeastern United States. It stays underground after dawn, but then emerges into surface waters at dusk. They are a carnivorous fish and are well adapted to their environment. The species' breeding behavior is rarely documented. Spawning occurs underground and in darkness between January and April. The status and distribution of cave-obligate species is incomplete or lacking entirely, which makes conservation and management decisions difficult. Kentucky and Missouri are the two main states that have their agencies managing this species in some way.
A blind fish is a fish without functional eyes. Most blind fish species are found in dark habitats such as the deep ocean, deep river channels and underground.
Caecobarbus geertsi, the African blind barb or Congo blind barb, is a species of cyprinid fish. This threatened cavefish is only known from Democratic Republic of the Congo, and it is the only member of the monotypic genus Caecobarbus. George Albert Boulenger described this fish in 1921 and it apparently lacks any close relatives in the Congo region.
The waterfall climbing cave fish, also known as the cave angel fish, is a species of troglobitic hillstream loach endemic to Thailand. It reaches a length of 2.8 centimetres (1.1 in) SL. This fish is known for its fins, which can grapple onto terrain, and its ability to climb. This fish is the only known member of its genus.
The blind swamp eel is a species of fish in the family Synbranchidae. It is endemic to Mexico where it lives in cave systems and is known in Spanish as the anguila ciega. The International Union for Conservation of Nature has rated this cavefish as "endangered".
Typhlichthys subterraneus, the southern cavefish, is a species of cavefish in the family Amblyopsidae endemic to karst regions of the eastern United States.
Cavefish or cave fish is a generic term for fresh and brackish water fish adapted to life in caves and other underground habitats. Related terms are subterranean fish, troglomorphic fish, troglobitic fish, stygobitic fish, phreatic fish and hypogean fish.
The popeye catalufa, also known as the bigeye soldierfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish in the family Priacanthidae, the bigeyes. This fish has an overall dusky orange to red colour with white markings. The dorsal fin appears feathery while rest of fins have black margins. It occurs in the eastern Pacific, where it is found from Oregon to Chile. It occasionally makes its way into the aquarium trade. It grows to a size of 34 centimetres (13 in) in length. This species is nocturnal and shy, preferring deeper waters off islands. It has been recorded associating with squirrelfishes and cardinalfishes but the popeye catalufa goes as deep as 76 metres (249 ft), deeper than its associated species. This species has been recorded from rocky habitats at depths of less than 5 metres (16 ft) to over 100 metres (330 ft). It is a carnivorous species and, when kept in captivity, is known to feed on worms, crustaceans and brittle stars.
Eigenmannia vicentespelaea is a species of weakly electric knifefish in the family Sternopygidae. Native to the São Domingos karst area in central Brazil, it is the only known knifefish to exclusively inhabit caves. Measuring up to 21 cm (8.3 in) long, E. vicentespelaea can be distinguished from its relatives by its translucent body and reduced or absent eyes. As some individuals retain well-developed eyes, this fish may have colonized caves only recently in evolutionary time.
Chologaster cornuta, commonly named swampfish, ricefish, or riceditch killifish, is a freshwater fish of the family Amblyopsidae. It is the only living species of the genus Chologaster. It only lives in US rivers in the Atlantic Coastal Plain drainages, from southeast Virginia to central Georgia. It lives up to two years. The Latin name refers to a very tiny horned bulge at front of the eye. They are commonly 4 cm (1.6 in) long, but may reach about 7 cm (2.8 in).
Amblyopsis is a genus of small fish in the family Amblyopsidae that are endemic to the central and eastern United States. Like other cavefish, they lack pigmentation and are blind. The most recently described species was in 2014. Uniquely among fish, Amblyopsis brood their eggs in the gill chambers. It was formerly incorrectly speculated that the same brooding behavior existed in other genera in the family and in the pirate perch. During the Pleistocene period, the modern Ohio river was a barrier of dispersal and created a great genetic variation, leading to two phylogenetically distinct lineages from the species Amblyopsis.
The Hoosier cavefish is a subterranean species of blind fish from southern Indiana in the United States. Described in 2014, A. hoosieri was the first new species of amblyopsid cavefish to be discovered in 40 years.
