Paedocypris progenetica

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Paedocypris progenetica
Paedocypris progenetica 001.jpg
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Cypriniformes
Family: Cyprinidae
Subfamily: Danioninae
Genus: Paedocypris
Species:
P. progenetica
Binomial name
Paedocypris progenetica

Paedocypris progenetica is a species of tiny cyprinid fish endemic to the Indonesian islands of Sumatra and Bintan where it is found in peat swamps and blackwater streams. [2] It was discovered by Singaporean ichthyologist Heok Hui Tan. He has written a description of the fish along with another species of the same genus called Paedocypris micromegethes.

It is one of the smallest known fish in the world, together with species such as Schindleria brevipinguis , with females reaching a maximum standard length of 10.3 mm (0.41 in), males 9.8 mm (0.39 in) and the smallest known mature specimen, a female, measuring only 7.9 mm (0.31 in). [3] It held the record for the shortest known vertebrate until the frog Paedophryne amauensis was formally described in January 2012, while the parasitic males of the anglerfish Photocorynus spiniceps are but 6.2 millimetres (0.24 in) long. [4]

See also

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Heok Hui Tan is a Singaporean ichthyologist at the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum of the National University of Singapore. Dr. Tan's main interest lies in the systematics of Southeast Asian freshwater fishes, encompassing taxonomy, ecology and biogeography. His primary areas of research focus on neglected and de novo habitats such as peat swamp forests, swamp forests, and rapids.

References

  1. "Paedocypris progenetica". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species .
  2. 1 2 Kottelat, Maurice; Britz, Ralf; Heok Hui, Tan; Witte, Kai-Erik (2005). "Paedocypris, a new genus of Southeast Asian cyprinid fish with a remarkable sexual dimorphism,comprises the world's smallest vertebrate" (PDF). Proceedings of the Royal Society B. The Royal Society. 273: 895–899. doi:10.1098/rspb.2005.3419. PMC   1560243 . PMID   16627273. Archived from the original (PDF) on 12 July 2009. Retrieved 26 October 2012.
  3. Busson, Frédéric; Froese, Rainer (15 November 2011). "Paedocypris progenetica". FishBase. Retrieved 13 January 2012.
  4. "World's tiniest frogs found in Papua New Guinea". The Australian . 12 January 2012. Retrieved 19 September 2018.