Loach

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Loaches
Temporal range: Oligocene–recent
Loaches.jpg
Examples of several loach families
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Cypriniformes
Superfamily: Cobitoidea
Swainson, 1838
Families

Loaches are fish of the superfamily Cobitoidea. They are freshwater, benthic (bottom-dwelling) fish found in rivers and creeks throughout Eurasia and northern Africa. [2] Loaches are among the most diverse groups of fish; the 1249 known species of Cobitoidea comprise about 107 genera divided among 9 families. [3] [4]

Contents

Etymology

The name Cobitoidea comes from the type genus, Cobitis, described by Carl Linnaeus in his landmark 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae. However, its origin predates modern zoological nomenclature and derives from a term used by Aristotle to refer to "small fishes that bury... like the gudgeon." [2]

Description

Common horseface loach Acantopsis rungthipae Acantopsis rungthipae.jpg
Common horseface loach Acantopsis rungthipae

Loaches display a wide variety of morphologies, making the group difficult to characterize as a whole using external traits. They range in adult length from the 23 mm (1 in) miniature eel-loach, Pangio longimanus , to the 50 cm (20 in) imperial flower loach, Leptobotia elongata , with the latter weighing up to 3 kg (6.6 lbs). [5] [6] [7] Most loaches are small, narrow-bodied and elongate, with minute cycloid scales that are often embedded under the skin, patterns of brown-to-black pigment along the dorsal surface and sides, and three or more pairs of whisker-like barbels at the mouth. [8] The type species of the family Cobitidae, Cobitis taenia , has a body shape and pigment pattern typical of Cobitoidea. However, many loaches are eel-like or conversely, quite stout-bodied; some balitorids have large, visible scales. [9]

Loaches in the families Cobitidae, Botiidae, and Serpenticobitidae possess a bifid, protrusible spine below the eye, or in the case of the genus Acantopsis , between the eye and the tip of the snout. [10] [11]

Taxonomy

Cobitis species described by Linnaeus Ichthyologie; ou, Histoire naturelle des poissons (Plate 31) (7064407839).jpg
Cobitis species described by Linnaeus

Classification

Cobitoidea is a superfamily within the order Cypriniformes, one of the most diverse groups of vertebrates. The order is commonly known as "minnows, carps, loaches, and relatives," and it includes the suckers (Catostomidae) and algae eaters (Gyrinocheilidae). Fishes of the latter family, which contains only a single genus Gyrinocheilus , are sometimes referred to as sucking loaches. It is uncertain if Gyrinocheilidae, or a clade containing both Gyrinocheilidae and Catostomidae, is sister to Cobitoidea. [12]

History of classification

At the turn of the 20th century only two families of loaches had been described, and of these only Cobitidae was widely recognized by taxonomists. In the early 1900s, the American ichthyologist Fowler and the Indian ichthyologist Hora recognized what would come to be known as Balitoridae and Gastromyzontidae. [13] [14] Nemachelidae, and later Botiidae, were described as subfamilies of Cobitidae until their elevation to family status in 2002. [15] [16] [17] Owing to shared morphological characteristics (see osteology, below) the relationship of the botiid and cobitid loaches was particularly difficult to resolve until the advent of molecular phylogenetics. Three of the nine families, containing only two or three species apiece, were recognized within the last ten years. [12]

Phylogeny

Reproduction of molecular phylogeny of Cobitoidea from Bohlen & Šlechtová, 2009, [18] with common names following Eschmeyer's Catalog of Fishes. [19]

Serpent loach Serpenticobitis cingulata Serpenticobitis cingulata.jpg
Serpent loach Serpenticobitis cingulata

Gyrinocheilidae Gill 1905algae eaters

Cobitoidea

Botiidae Berg 1940pointface loaches

Vaillantellidae Nalbant & Bănărescu 1977longfin loaches

Cobitidae Swainson 1838true or spined loaches

Ellopostomatidae Bohlen & Šlechtová 2009squarehead loaches

Nemacheilidae Regan 1911brook loaches

Barbuccidae Kottelat 2012scooter loaches

Balitoridae Swainson 1839river loaches

Serpenticobitidae Kottelat 2012serpent loaches

Gastromyzontidae Fowler 1905hillstream loaches

Osteology

Among loaches, the majority of known morphological synapomorphies (shared characters derived from a common ancestor) are osteological. In particular, modifications to the ethmoid and surrounding bones within the neurocranium unite Cobitoidea, in addition to certain lateral-line canal ossifications. [8] An erectile suborbital spine, a modification of the lateral ethmoid, was formerly thought to represent a synapomorphy between Cobitidae and Botiidae. [20] It is now considered a pleisiomorphy of Cobitoidea, a character shared by the common ancestor but lost in most loach lineages. [21] The suborbital spine is also retained in the serpent loaches, Serpenticobitidae. [10]

Habitat and distribution

Loaches are found in a wide variety of habitats throughout Europe, northern Africa, and central and Southeast Asia. Most families occur predominantly in rocky mountain streams at high elevations, but almost all have lowland representatives as well. [2] Many species of Cobitidae burrow in the sand and inhabit riverbeds in broad, flat terrain. At least three families contain blind, troglomorphic species adapted to life in caves.

Relationship with humans

The oriental weatherfish or pond loach is widely introduced outside its native range Weather loach.jpg
The oriental weatherfish or pond loach is widely introduced outside its native range

Some loaches are important food fish, especially in East and Southeast Asia where they are a common sight in markets.

Loaches are popular in the aquarium trade. Some of the most well-known examples are the clown loach (Chromobotia macracanthus), the kuhli loach (Pangio kuhlii), and the dwarf chain loach (Ambastaia sidthimunki). Botiid and gastromyzontid loaches also occasionally make their way into the trade. [22]

Although loaches have a strictly Old World native distribution, the oriental weatherfish, Misgurnus anguillicaudatus, (also known as the dojo loach) has been introduced in parts of the United States. [23] [24]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cyprinidae</span> Family of freshwater fish

Cyprinidae is a family of freshwater fish commonly called the carp or minnow family, including the carps, the true minnows, and their relatives the barbs and barbels, among others. Cyprinidae is the largest and most diverse fish family, and the largest vertebrate animal family overall, with about 3,000 species; only 1,270 of these remain extant, divided into about 200 valid genera. Cyprinids range from about 12 mm (0.5 in) in size to the 3 m (9.8 ft) giant barb. By genus and species count, the family makes up more than two-thirds of the ostariophysian order Cypriniformes. The family name is derived from the Greek word kyprînos.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cypriniformes</span> Order of fishes

Cypriniformes is an order of ray-finned fish, which includes many families and genera of cyprinid fish, such as barbs, gobies, loaches, botias, and minnows. Cypriniformes is an “order-within-an-order”, placed under the superorder Ostariophysi—which is also made up of cyprinid, ostariophysin fishes. The order contains 11-12 families, over 400 genera, and more than 4,250 named species; new species are regularly described, and new genera are recognized frequently. Cyprinids are most diverse in South and Southeast Asia, but are entirely absent from Australia and South America. At 112 years old, the longest-lived cypriniform fish documented is the bigmouth buffalo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cobitidae</span> Family of fishes

Cobitidae, also known as the True loaches, is a family of Old World freshwater fish. They occur throughout Eurasia and in Morocco, and inhabit riverine ecosystems. Today, most "loaches" are placed in other families. The family includes about 260 described species. New species are being described regularly.

<i>Pangio</i> Genus of fishes

Pangio is a genus of small Asian freshwater fish in the true loach family Cobitidae. In earlier taxonomic schemes it was known as Acanthophthalmus. The "kuhli loach" is well-known in the aquarium trade and commonly identified as P. kuhlii, but most individuals actually appear to be P. semicincta.

<i>Botia</i> Genus of fishes

Botia is a genus of freshwater fish in the loach family (Botiidae). It was a large genus with about 20 species. In 2004 Maurice Kottelat proposed in his paper to divide the genus into four related genera based on fish appearance and locality:

<i>Yasuhikotakia</i> Genus of fishes

Yasuhikotakia is a genus of botiid loaches, many which are popular aquarium fish. It is named in honor of Japanese collector/researcher Dr. Yasuhiko Taki. This genus has been separated from the genus Botia in the paper by Maurice Kottelat in 2004.

<i>Cobitis</i> Genus of fishes

Cobitis is a genus of small freshwater fish in the family Cobitidae from temperate and subtropical Eurasia. It contains the "typical spiny loaches", including the well-known spined loach of Europe. Similar spiny loaches, occurring generally south of the range of Cobitis, are nowadays separated in Sabanejewia.

Leptobotia is a genus of fish in the family Botiidae endemic to China.

<i>Nemacheilus</i> Genus of fishes

Nemacheilus is a genus of stone loaches native to Asia.

<i>Schistura</i> Genus of fishes

Schistura is a genus of fish in the stone loach family Nemacheilidae native to the streams and rivers of the southern and eastern Asia. Some of these species are troglobitic.

<i>Triplophysa</i> Genus of fishes

Triplophysa is a genus of fish in the family Nemacheilidae found mainly in and around the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau in China, as well as inland waters of the larger part of central Asia. They can be distinguished from other genera of Nemacheilidae by marked sexual dimorphism, including the development of nuptial tubercles on breeding males. Currently, the genus is a mixed assemblage of species. Some lineages have been identified and treated as subgenera, but as Wikipedia follows Fishbase for fish species all but Hedinichthys have been treated as subgenera in Wikipedia, although Kottelat in his revision of the loaches did recognise them as valid. FishBase, however, includes these in Triplophysa without specifying subgenera and treats the names given by Kottelat as synonyms.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Botiidae</span> Family of fishes

Botiidae is a family of cypriniform ray-finned fishes from South, Southeast, and East Asia. Until recently they were placed in the true loach family Cobitidae, until Maurice Kottelat revised the loaches and re-elevated this taxon to family rank in 2012. The family includes about 56 species.

<i>Psilorhynchus</i> Genus of fishes

Psilorhynchus is a genus of fish in the family Psilorhynchidae native to South Asia. This genus is the only member of its family. The members of Psilorhynchus are small benthic fishes which occur in rivers and streams with fast to swift currents, hence they are often referred to a torrent minnows. They are distributed in southern Asia, in the Indo-Burma region and the Western Ghats.

Bibarba bibarba is a species of loach that is found in the Chengjiang River of the Long River system in China. It is the only known congener of Bibarba parvoculus, a troglobitic species described in 2015, from which it is believed to have evolutionarily split in the Early Miocene.

Cobitis brevifasciata is a species of loach endemic to the Korean Peninsula.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nemacheilidae</span> Family of fishes

The Nemacheilidae, or stone loaches, are a family of cypriniform fishes that inhabit stream environments, mostly in Eurasia, with one genus, Afronemacheilus found in Africa. The family includes about 790 species.

Vaillantella maassi, the forktail loach, is a species of loach in the family Vaillantellidae, a monogeneric family with two other species, Vaillantella cinnamomea and Vaillantella euepiptera. They are from Southeast Asia.

Ellopostoma mystax, the enigmatic loach, is a small, endangered species of freshwater fish originally placed in the family Balitoridae, but now generally in Ellopostomatidae.

Bibarba parvoculus is a cave-dwelling species of loach endemic to a karst cave in Guangxi in southern China. Its only known congener is the surface-dwelling Bibarba bibarba, from which it is believed to have evolutionarily split in the Early Miocene.

References

  1. ↑ Chen, Jiao (2015). "First fossil cobitid (Teleostei: Cypriniformes) from EarlyMiddle Oligocene deposits of South China" (PDF). Vertebrata PalAsiatica.
  2. 1 2 3 Kottelat, M. (2012). "Conspectus cobitidum: an inventory of the loaches of the world (Teleostei: Cypriniformes: Cobitoidei)". The Raffles Bulletin of Zoology. Supplement no. 26: 1–199.
  3. ↑ Fricke, R.; Eschmeyer, W. N.; van der Laan, R., eds. (2019). "Eschmeyer's catalog of fishes: genera, species, references". Electronic version accessed February 2019.
  4. ↑ Nelson, J. S.; Grande, T. C.; Wilson, M. V. H. (2016). Fishes of the World (5th ed.). Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons. pp. 189–193. ISBN   978-1-118-34233-6.
  5. ↑ Britz, R.; Kottelat, M. (2009). "Pangio longimanus, a miniature species of eel-loach from Central Laos (Teleostei: Cypriniformes: Cobitidae)". Ichthyological Exploration of Freshwaters. 20 (4): 371–376. ISSN   0936-9902.
  6. ↑ Li, L.; Wei Wei, Q.; Ming Wu, J.; Zhang, H.; Liu, Y.; Xie, X. (2015). "Diet of Leptobotia elongata revealed by stomach content analysis and inferred from stable isotope signatures". Environmental Biology of Fishes. 98 (8): 1965–1978. doi:10.1007/s10641-015-0414-4. S2CID   18612635.
  7. ↑ Nichols, J. T. (1943). The Freshwater Fishes of China—Central Asiatic Expeditions. New York: American Museum of Natural History. p. 203.
  8. 1 2 Conway, K. W. (2011). "Osteology of the South Asian genus Psilorhynchus McClelland, 1839 (Teleostei: Ostariophysi: Psilorhynchidae), with investigation of its phylogenetic relationships within the order Cypriniformes". Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society. 163: 50–154. doi: 10.1111/j.1096-3642.2011.00698.x .
  9. ↑ Kottelat, M. (1988). "Indian and Indochinese species of Balitora (Osteichthyes: Cypriniformes) with descriptions of two new species and comments on the family-group names Balitoridae and Homalopteridae". Revue Suisse de Zoologie. 95 (2): 487–504. doi: 10.5962/bhl.part.79667 .
  10. 1 2 Bohlen, J.; Šlechtová, V.; Šlechta, V.; Šlechtová, V.; Sember, A.; Ráb, P. (2016). "A ploidy difference represents an impassable barrier for hybridisation in animals. Is there an exception among botiid loaches (Teleostei: Botiidae)?". PLOS ONE. 11 (7): e0159311. Bibcode:2016PLoSO..1159311B. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0159311 . PMC   4956246 . PMID   27442252.
  11. ↑ Boyd, D. A.; Nithirojpakdee, P.; Deein, G.; Vidthayanon, C.; Grudpan, C.; Tangjitjaroen, W.; Pfeiffer, J. M.; Randall, Z. S.; Srisombat, T.; Page, L. M. (2017). "Revision of the horseface loaches (Cobitidae, Acantopsis), with descriptions of three new species from Southeast Asia". Zootaxa. 4341 (2): 151–192. doi: 10.11646/zootaxa.4341.2.1 . PMID   29245684.
  12. 1 2 Armbruster, J. W.; Tan, M. (2018). "Phylogenetic classification of extant genera of fishes of the order Cypriniformes (Teleostei: Ostariophysi)". Zootaxa. 4476 (1): 6–39. doi: 10.11646/zootaxa.4476.1.4 . PMID   30313339.
  13. ↑ Fowler, H. W. (1905). "Some Fishes from Borneo". Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia. 57: 455–523. JSTOR   4063033.
  14. ↑ Hora, S. L. (1932). "Classification, bionomics and evolution of homalopterid fishes". Memoirs of the Indian Museum. 12 (2): 263–330.
  15. ↑ Liu, H.; Tzeng, C. S.; Teng, H. Y. (2002). "Sequence variations in the mitochondrial DNA control region and their implications for the phylogeny of the Cypriniformes". Canadian Journal of Zoology. 80 (3): 569–581. doi:10.1139/z02-035.
  16. ↑ Tang, Q.; Liu, H.; Mayden, R.; Xiong, B. (2006). "Comparison of evolutionary rates in the mitochondrial DNA cytochrome b gene and control region and their implications for phylogeny of the Cobitoidea (Teleostei: Cypriniformes)". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 39 (2): 347–357. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2005.08.007. PMID   16213167.
  17. ↑ Liu, S.; Mayden, R.; Zhang, J.; Yu, D.; Tang, Q.; Deng, X.; Liu, H. (2012). "Phylogenetic relationships of the Cobitoidea (Teleostei: Cypriniformes) inferred from mitochondrial and nuclear genes with analyses of gene evolution". Gene. 508 (1): 60–72. doi:10.1016/j.gene.2012.07.040. PMID   22868207.
  18. ↑ Bohlen, J.; Šlechtová, V. (2009). "Phylogenetic position of the fish genus Ellopostoma (Teleostei: Cypriniformes) using molecular genetic data". Ichthyological Exploration of Freshwaters. 20 (2): 157–162. ISSN   0936-9902.
  19. ↑ Van der Laan, R.; Fricke, R.; Eschmeyer, W. N., eds. (2019). "Eschmeyer's catalog of fishes: classification". Electronic version accessed February 2019.
  20. ↑ Sawada, Y. (1982). "Phylogeny and zoogeography of the superfamily Cobitoidea (Cyprinoidei, Cypriniformes)". Memoirs of the Faculty of Fisheries Sciences, Hokkaido University. 28 (2): 65–223.
  21. ↑ Šlechtová, V.; Bohlen, J.; Tan, H. H. (2007). "Families of Cobitoidea (Teleostei; Cypriniformes) as revealed from nuclear genetic data and the position of the mysterious genera Barbucca, Psilorhynchus, Serpenticobitis and Vaillantella". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 44 (3): 1358–1365. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2007.02.019. PMID   17433724.
  22. ↑ Loaches: natural history and aquarium care. Neptune City, NJ: T.F.H. Publications. 2008. ISBN   9780793806201.
  23. ↑ Fuller, P. L.; Nico, L. G.; Williams, J. D. (1999). Nonindigenous fishes introduced into inland waters of the United States. Bethesda, MD: American Fisheries Society, Special Publication #27. p. 176.
  24. ↑ Robins, R. H.; Page, L. M.; Williams, J. D.; Randall, Z. S.; Sheehy, G. E. (2018). Fishes in the fresh waters of Florida: an identification guide and atlas. Gainesville, Florida: University of Florida Press. pp. 141–142. ISBN   9781683400332.
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