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.
Catfish are a diverse group of ray-finned fish. Named for their prominent barbels, which resemble a cat's whiskers, catfish range in size and behavior from the three largest species alive, the Mekong giant catfish from Southeast Asia, the wels catfish of Eurasia, and the piraíba of South America, to detritivores, and even to a tiny parasitic species commonly called the candiru, Vandellia cirrhosa. Neither the armour-plated types nor the naked types have scales. Despite their name, not all catfish have prominent barbels or "whiskers". Members of the Siluriformes order are defined by features of the skull and swimbladder. Catfish are of considerable commercial importance; many of the larger species are farmed or fished for food. Many of the smaller species, particularly the genus Corydoras, are important in the aquarium hobby. Many catfish are nocturnal, but others are crepuscular or diurnal.
The Amblyopsidae are a fish family commonly referred to as cavefish, blindfish, or swampfish. They are small freshwater fish found in the dark environments of caves, springs and swamps in the eastern half of the United States. Like other troglobites, most amblyopsids exhibit adaptations to these dark environments, including the lack of functional eyes and the absence of pigmentation. More than 200 species of cavefishes are known, but only six of these are in the family Amblyopsidae. One of these, Forbesichthys agassizii, spends time both underground and aboveground. A seventh species in this family, Chologaster cornuta, is not a cave-dweller but lives in aboveground swamps.
Synbranchiformes, often called swamp eels, is an order of ray-finned fishes that are eel-like but have spiny rays, indicating that they belong to the superorder Acanthopterygii.
The silver arowana is a South American freshwater bony fish of the family Osteoglossidae. Silver arowanas are sometimes kept in aquariums, but they are predatory and require a very large tank.
The Mekong giant catfish, is a large, threatened species of catfish in the shark catfish family (Pangasiidae), native to the Mekong basin in Southeast Asia and adjacent China. It is considered critically endangered due to accelerating habitat loss.
The golden cave catfish is a critically endangered species of airbreathing catfish. This cavefish is only known to live in the Aigamas cave, Otjozondjupa region, Namibia. It has also been reported from the nearby Dragon's Breath Cave, but this is an error. The golden cave catfish lack pigmentation and are up to 16.1 cm in standard length. They have very small eyes that are covered with skin, and are probably effectively blind. They feed on detritus and invertebrates that fall into the lake in which they live. The population is estimated at 200–400 individuals. Little is known about its reproduction, and attempts to breed it in captivity have failed. The population is threatened by chance events and water extraction from the cave lake, which has resulted in a drop of the water level.
In fish anatomy and turtle anatomy, a barbel is a slender, whiskerlike sensory organ near the mouth. Fish that have barbels include the catfish, the carp, the goatfish, the hagfish, the sturgeon, the zebrafish, the black dragonfish and some species of shark such as the sawshark. Barbels house the taste buds of such fish and are used to search for food in murky water.
The Heptapteridae, or three-barbeled catfishes, are a family of catfish that originate from the Americas. Most species are restricted to South America, but Imparfinis lineatus, Nemuroglanis panamensis and Pimelodella chagresi are native to Panama, and Rhamdia species occur as far north as Mexico. The name Heptapteridae is derived from Greek, hepta meaning seven and pteron meaning fin.
Horabagrus brachysoma or the sun catfish is a species of catfish endemic to rivers in the Western Ghats of India. It is known as Günther's catfish or yellow catfish. It is also known as Manjakoori in its native range. It is also known by a host of other names, such as bullseye catfish, golden red tail catfish and solar catfish.
The Dalmatian barbelgudgeon is a European ray-finned fish species in the family Cyprinidae. It is the only member of the monotypic genus Aulopyge. The genus name is derived from the ancient Greek aulós + pygé, and thus means approximately "fluted tail-stem". The specific name honours the Austrian naturalist and diplomat Charles von Hügel. Though the genus was established in 1841, the species was only mentioned but not described at that time; that happened the following year, and in 1843, the frequently-seen misspelling huegeli was introduced. Many fish databases use 1843 as the year of description. The IUCN Red List uses 1842 and also has an explanation of the confusion here.
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 weatherfish is a species of true loach that has a wide range in Europe and some parts of Asia. It is an omnivorous scavenger bottom feeder, using its sensitive barbels to find edible items. The diet mostly consists of small aquatic invertebrates along with some detritus. The weatherfish is long and thin which allows it to burrow through the substrate and navigate through places that deeper bodied fish would have trouble with. It grows up to 30 cm (12 in) in total length, though there are fishermen who say they have caught longer, up to 45 cm (17.7 in). If true, this would make Misgurnus fossilis the largest species of true loach.
The Andean catfish is a species of freshwater fish in the family Astroblepidae. The Spanish name for the Andean catfish is preñadilla. It is endemic to the highlands of the Ecuadorian Andes where it lives in mountain streams in four different drainage basins in the Imbakucha watershed. It is a brownish-grey fish growing to about 150 mm (6 in). The fish is threatened by human activities in the area with loss and fragmentation of its habitat, and the International Union for Conservation of Nature has assessed its conservation status as being "critically endangered".
The Mexican blindcat, in Spanish bagre de muzquiz, is a species of North American freshwater catfish. Until recently, it was believed to be endemic to Coahuila in the Rio Bravo drainage in northern Mexico; however, in 2016 the species was reported from the Amistad National Recreation Area, Texas, following earlier, unconfirmed sightings of blind, white catfish in the area. The captured specimens were brought to the San Antonio Zoo and Aquarium.
The juil ciego or blindwhiskered catfish is a species of three-barbeled catfish endemic to Mexico. This species is troglobitic, inhabiting a certain stream that flows through a single cave system.
Rhamdia is a genus of three-barbeled catfishes found in Mexico, Central and South America. These catfishes are nocturnal, opportunistic carnivores, found in a wide range of freshwater habitats. This genus includes a number of troglobitic members, encompassing a number of taxa, including R. enfurnada, R. guasarensis, R. laluchensis, R. laticauda, R. macuspanensis, R. quelen, R. reddelli and R. zongolicensis. In a few of these only some of their populations are troglobitic.
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.
Zongolica is a municipality located in the south zone in the State of Veracruz, about 100 km from state capital Xalapa. It has a surface of 63.34 km2. It is located at 18°40′N97°00′W. The name comes from Nahuatl Tzontli-coliuhqui 'crafty hair'.
