Freshwater fish taxonomy

The Lesvos Petrified Forest (western Lesvos, Greece) has long been famous for its plant fossils. Recently, one proboscidean (from the Gavathas locality) and seven micromammalian species (from the Lapsarna locality) were described; these were the first animals to be found in the Early Miocene subtropical forest. For the first time, a fauna of gastropods and ectothermic vertebrates from the Lapsarna locality is now available. This fauna derives from lacustrine sediments under the pyroclastic material that contains the petrified plants. Based on fragmented mollusc remains, isolated fish pharyngeal teeth and utricular otoliths (lapilli), fragmented amphibian vertebrae and a tooth-bearing element, and reptile fragmented dentaries, teeth, osteoderms and vertebrae, the presence of eight freshwater and three terrestrial gastropod species, three freshwater cyprinid species, and two amphibian and five reptile taxa has been confirmed. Stratigraphical and radiometric data suggest an age older than 18.4 ± 0.5 Ma (latest Early Miocene), in good agreement with the faunal composition. This paper is the first report of the concurrent presence of three cyprinid fish species in a Greek Early Miocene locality, as well as the first documentation of an Early Miocene proteid amphibian in southeastern Europe. The present findings represent one of the best-documented Early Miocene gastropod and fish faunas in the Aegean/southern Balkans, thus adding to our knowledge of Early Miocene amphibians and reptiles from that region and providing valuable information on the local subtropical ecosystem.

1. The headwaters of the Volga River exhibit large reaches with near-pristine conditions , and therefore long-term biodiversity monitoring of this catchment can provide rare and valuable information on a European lowland river. More specifically, freshwater fish species assemblages are a good indicator of ecosystem status, as they are particularly sensitive to environmental changes and hydromorphological alterations. Historical records show that the fish fauna of the Upper Volga has changed over time, both in species composition and in abundance. The construction of the Volga-Kama cascade (a series of large dams) has specifically affected the migration of diadromous species.
2. Environmental DNA metabarcoding offers a non-invasive approach to determine the number of species in an aquatic ecosystem, as well as their identity and distribution. This approach is especially useful for fish fauna surveys along large rivers and long-term biomonitoring, with the advantage of having no impact on the species and their habitats.
3. To infer the current fish species diversity and the spatial distribution of each species in the free-flowing section of the Upper Volga River, as well as in selected tributaries , an environmental DNA metabarcoding approach was applied, using three mitochondrial DNA markers. This method allowed the positive identification of 23 fish species and their respective distributions in the headwaters of the Volga.
4. This assessment provides a valuable example of the application of environmental DNA metabarcoding in a large river system, and constitutes a starting point for future investigations and long-term biomonitoring in the Upper Volga system. In addition, the results can also serve as a reference for fish diversity assessments of other large European lowland rivers, and can guide future conservation and management measures in the headwaters of the Volga.This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited and is not used for commercial purposes.

Uzbekistan is one of two doubly landlocked countries in the world, where all rivers are endorheic basins. Although fish diversity is relatively poor in Uzbekistan, the fish fauna of the region has not yet been fully studied. The aim of this study was to establish a reliable barcoding reference database for fish in Uzbekistan. A total of 666 specimens, belonging to 59 species within 39 genera, 17 families, and 9 orders, were subjected to polymerase chain reaction amplification in the barcode region and sequenced. The length of the 666 barcodes was 682 bp. The average K2P distances within species, genera, and families were 0.22%, 6.33%, and 16.46%, respectively. The average interspecific distance was approximately 28.8 times higher than the mean intraspecific distance. The Barcode Index Number (BIN) discordance report showed that 666 specimens represented 55 BINs, of which five were singletons, 45 were taxonomically concordant, and five were taxonomically discordant. The barcode gap analysis demonstrated that 89.3% of the fish species examined could be discriminated by DNA barcoding. These results provide new insights into fish diversity in the inland waters of Uzbekistan and can provide a basis for the development of further studies on fish fauna.

Members of the freshwater halfbeak genus Dermogenys are hard to identify to the species level, despite several previous attempts to isolate fixed meristic, morphometric and colour pattern differences. This has led to ongoing confusion in scientific literature, records of species occurrence, and entries in museum collections. Here, a DNA barcoding study was conducted on the genus to gain further understanding of its taxonomic status across the Southeast Asian region. Fish were collected from 33 localities, spanning freshwater and brackish habitats in Malaysia, Western Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam. In total, 290 samples of Dermogenys spp. were amplified for a 651 base pair fragment of the mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase c subunit I (COI) gene. Analysis was able to successfully differentiate the three species: D. collettei, D. siamensis, D. sumatrana; reveal the presence of a new putative species, Dermogenys sp., that was sampled in sympatry with D. collettei at three locations; as well as uncovering two genetic lineages of a fifth species, D. bispina, that display non-overlapping geographical distributions in drainages of northern Borneo; Kudat and Sandakan. This study expands the barcode library for Zenarchopteridae, demonstrates the efficacy of DNA barcoding techniques for differentiating Dermogenys species, and the potential thereof in species discovery. The tropical halfbeak genus Dermogenys, commonly known as silver halfbeak, pygmy halfbeak, wrestling half-beak, Malayan halfbeak, or 'julong julong' , occurs in the Southeast Asian region. The genus is the smallest in size among zenarchopterids, and inhabits fresh and brackish waters 1 , being able to tolerate some level of salinity. Halfbeaks are of limited economic value, however they are sometimes encountered in regional fish markets in Cambodia, Thailand and Vietnam. As a group, Dermogenys has received considerable scientific attention 2–14. The genus is viviparous (bearing live young) and generally limited to freshwater and estuarine habitats, suggesting low dispersal capacity; yet has a wide natural geographical distribution, including large mainland rivers such as the Mekong and drainages of the Indonesian and Philippine archipelagos. These factors mean the genus presents a tractable model for investigation of factors affecting phylogeographical pattern 12 in what is a biogeographically complex and biologically diverse region of the tropics 15,16. Historically, Dermogenys taxonomy and systematics have been contentious and challenging. First described in the early 19 th Century, in van Hasselt 17 , the type specimen was referred to as D. pusilla. In the first revision,

The round goby Neogobius melanostomus was the last Ponto-Caspian goby species to enter in the Danube River bordered by Serbia and Yugoslavia. There are five Ponto-Caspian goby species in the waters of Serbia including the sand goby Neogobius fluviatilis, the round goby Neogobius melanostomus, the racer goby Neogobius gymnotrachelus, the bighead goby Neogobius kessleri, and the tubenose goby Proterorhinus marmoratus. The sand, bighead, and tubenose gobies occur along the Yugoslav Danube and in the lower reach of the Danube's tributaries; the racer goby is found both upstream and downstream of the Djerdap II dam; and, the round goby has been collected only downstream of the Djerdap II dam. Investigations on the continuous morphological characters of the round goby revealed neither sexual dimorphism, nor significant differences in adult size-classes, although some suggestions of sexual dimorphism were found in cranial skeletal analyses. Analysis of external continuous characters revealed a west-east cline along the distribution range of the round goby in the Black Sea basin. Molluscivory for the round goby was corroborated along the Danube. Standard length of each age class for the round goby in the Danube was less than populations in the Caspian and Azov seas.

The taxon known as Corydoras paleatus carries one of the most complex taxonomic histories among Corydoradinae catfishes. A comprehensive review of specimens attributed to that species from several localities was carried out, allowing the clear recognition of C. paleatus and also of a new species previously misidentified as C. paleatus, described herein. Corydoras paleatus can be distinguished from its congeners by presenting the following unique combination of features: perpendicularly directed serrations along entire posterior margin of the pectoral spine; three large black blotches along midline of flank; hyaline or black pectoral fin; and transversal black bars on caudal-fin lobes. Corydoras paleatus is known from the lower rio Paraná basin, coastal rivers from Southern Brazil and Uruguay and rio Uruguai basin. The new species can be distinguished from its congeners by having the following unique combination of features: three large black blotches along midline of flank; three nasal pores; mesethmoid short; infraorbital 2 not in contact with compound pterotic; striated black spots from the snout tip to nuchal plate region; markedly rounded snout; and anterior portion of dorsal fin spotted. The new species is known from the upper rio Uruguai basin, from the rivers Canoas, do Peixe and Pelotas. O táxon conhecido como Corydoras paleatus carrega uma das histórias taxonômicas mais complexas dentre os bagres Corydoradinae. Uma revisão abrangente de espécimes atribuídos a essa espécie, de várias localidades, foi conduzida. A análise do material colhido permitiu o reconhecimento claro de C. paleatus e também de uma espécie nova, previamente identificada erroneamente como C. paleatus, aqui descrita. Corydoras paleatus pode ser distinguida de suas congêneres por possuir a seguinte combinação única de características: serrilhas perpendicularmente direcionadas ao longo de toda a margem posterior do acúleo peitoral; três manchas pretas grandes ao longo da linha mediana do flanco; nadadeira peitoral hialina ou preta; e barras transversais pretas nos lobos da nadadeira caudal. Corydoras paleatus é conhecida da bacia do baixo rio Paraná, rios costeiros do sul do Brasil e Uruguai, e bacia do rio Uruguai. A espécie nova pode ser distinguida de suas congêneres por possuir a seguinte combinação única de caracteres: três manchas pretas grandes ao longo da linha mediana do flanco; três poros nasais; mesetmóide curto; infraorbital 2 não contatando o pterótico composto; manchas pretas estriadas da ponta do focinho até a região da placa nucal; focinho marcadamente arredondado; e porção anterior da nadadeira dorsal com manchas. A espécie nova é conhecida da bacia do alto rio Uruguai, dos rios Canoas, do Peixe e Pelotas.

Two new species of Corydoras are described from the rio Madeira basin, Brazil. The intermediate long-snouted new species can be distinguished from its congeners by presenting the following combination of features: posterior margin of dorsal-fin spine with laminar serrations directed towards the origin of the spine; presence of two longitudinal black stripes on flanks; anterior portion of dorsal fin with sparse black chromatophores, not forming any conspicuous pattern; absence of a conspicuous black marbled coloration pattern on head; black spots on caudal fin, some spots arranged, forming transversal bars; and brownish dorsal-fin spine. The short-snouted new species can be distinguished from its congeners by the following combination of features: short mesethmoid; posterior laminar expansion of infraorbital 2 very reduced, not in contact with compound pterotic; two or three longitudinal black stripes on flanks; absence of an oblique or vertical black blotch across the eye; anterior portion of dorsal fin with sparse black chromatophores, not forming any conspicuous pattern; and ventral surface of trunk naked or covered by sparse platelets. Duas espécies novas de Corydoras são descritas da bacia do rio Madeira, Brasil. A espécie nova de focinho longo intermediário pode ser distinguida de suas congêneres por apresentar a seguinte combinação de características: margem posterior do espinho da nadadeira dorsal com serrilhas laminares direcionadas para origem do espinho; presença de duas faixas pretas longitudinais nos flancos; porção anterior da nadadeira dorsal com cromatóforos pretos esparsos, sem formar nenhum padrão conspícuo; ausência de um padrão de coloração marmoreado de preto conspícuo na cabeça; manchas pretas na nadadeira caudal, algumas delas alinhadas, formando barras transversais; e espinho dorsal amarronzado. A espécie nova de focinho curto pode ser distinguida de suas congêneres por apresentar a seguinte combinação de características: mesetmóide curto; expansão laminar posterior do infraorbital 2 muito reduzida, sem contato com o pterótico composto; duas ou três faixas pretas longitudinais nos flancos; ausência de uma mancha preta oblíqua ou vertical através do olho; porção anterior da nadadeira dorsal com cromatóforos pretos esparsos, sem formar nenhum padrão conspícuo; e superfície ventral do tronco nua ou coberta por plaquetas esparsas.

Abstract  The underlying mechanisms responsible for ecological plasticity and consequent invasive character of non-native freshwater fish species, variations in growth and life history traits in gibel carp Carassius gibelio (Bloch) were compared in natural and artificial water bodies of Turkey. Females significantly outnumbered males in all natural and most artificial waters. Discriminate function analysis differentiated gibel populations into three separate groups (natural lakes, artificial water bodies and running waters), with significant differences among separated groups in growth index, standard length and age at maturity, relative fecundity and gonado-somatic index, but not in egg diameter and both generalised and relative condition. Growth features (e.g. growth index and relative condition) and reproductive features (e.g. relative and absolute fecundity) positively correlated with water body area. No correlations were found for any growth or life history trait with depth, latitude and altitude. With the exception of smaller size at maturity, all traits were higher in populations from artificial water bodies than those inhabiting running waters, suggesting gibel carp is required to exert more reproductive effort to invade natural ecosystems than artificial waters.

"1. Human activities affect fish assemblages in a variety of ways. Large-scale and long-term disturbances such as in-stream dredging and mining alter habitat and hydrodynamic characteristics within rivers which can, in turn, alter fish distribution. Habitat heterogeneity is decreased as the natural riffle–pool–run sequences are lost to continuous pools and, as a consequence, lotic species are displaced by lentic species, while generalist and invasive species displace native habitat specialists. Sediment and organic detritus accumulate in deep, dredged reaches and behind dams, disrupting nutrient flow and destroying critical habitat for habitat specialist species.

2. We used standard ecological metrics such as species richness and diversity, as well as stable isotope analysis of δ13C and δ15N, to quantify the differences in fish assemblages sampled by benthic trawls among dredged and undredged sites in the Allegheny River, Pennsylvania, U.S.A.

3. Using mixed-effects models, we found that total catch, species richness and diversity were negatively correlated with depth (P < 0.05), while species richness, diversity and proportion of species in lithophilic (‘rock-loving’) reproductive guilds were lower at dredged than at undredged sites (P < 0.05).

4. Principal components analysis and manova revealed that taxa such as darters in brood hider and substratum chooser reproductive guilds were predominantly associated with undredged sites along principal component axis 1 (PC1 and manovaP < 0.05), while nest spawners such as catfish and open substratum spawners including suckers were more associated with dredged sites along PC2 (P < 0.05).

5. Stable isotope analysis of δ13C and δ15N revealed shifts from reliance on shallow water and benthic-derived nutrients at undredged sites to reliance on phytoplankton and terrestrial detritus at deep-water dredged sites. Relative trophic positions were also lower at dredged sites for many species; loss of benthic nutrient pathways associated with depth and dredging history is hypothesised.

6. The combination of ecological metrics and stable isotope analysis thus shows how anthropogenic habitat loss caused by gravel dredging can decrease benthic fish abundance and diversity, and that species in substratum-specific reproductive guilds are at particular risk. The effects of dredging also manifest by altering resource use and nutrient pathways within food webs. Management and conservation decisions should therefore consider the protection of relatively shallow areas with suitable substratum for spawning for the protection of native fishes."

To examine the effects of climate and anthropogenic impacts on fish growth, we compared growth rates of rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) in nine closely located warm-temperate lakes of contrasting morphometry, stratification and mixing regime, and trophic state. Analyses of long-term mark-recapture data showed that in deep oligotrophic and mesotrophic lakes, trout growth rates increased with increasing indices of lake productivity. In contrast, in shallow eutrophic lakes, where fish habitat volume is constrained by temperature and dissolved oxygen, trout growth rates declined with increasing productivity. Growth rates were higher in lakes with greater volumes of favourable habitat (i.e. dissolved oxygen >6.0 mg L-1 and temperature <21°C), and lower in lakes with increased turbidity, chlorophyll a, and nitrogen concentrations. Our findings suggest that lake increases in lake productivity and temperatures as a result of global climatic change are likely to be more detrimental to salmonid habitat quality and volume in shallower, productive lakes, while salmonids will better endure such changes in deeper, oligotrophic lakes. Fishery managers can use this information to aid future stocking decisions for salmonid fisheries in warm-temperate climates.

Tropical rainforests harbor extraordinary biodiversity. The Amazon basin is thought to hold 30% of all river fish species in the world. Information about the ecology, reproduction, and recruitment of most species is still lacking, thus hampering fisheries management and successful conservation strategies. One of the key understudied issues in the study of population dynamics is recruitment. Fish larval ecology in tropical biomes is still in its infancy owing to identification difficulties. Molecular techniques are very promising tools for the identification of larvae at the species level. However, one of their limits is obtaining individual sequences with large samples of larvae. To facilitate this task, we developed a new method based on the massive parallel sequencing capability of next generation sequencing (NGS) coupled with hybridization capture. We focused on the mitochondrial marker cytochrome oxidase I (COI). The results obtained using the new method were compared with individual larval sequencing. We validated the ability of the method to identify Amazonian catfish larvae at the species level and to estimate the relative abundance of species in batches of larvae. Finally, we applied the method and provided evidence for strong temporal variation in reproductive activity of catfish species in the Ucayalí River in the Peruvian Amazon. This new time and cost effective method enables the acquisition of large datasets, paving the way for a finer understanding of reproductive dynamics and recruitment patterns of tropical fish species, with major implications for fisheries management and conservation.

Plants produce a wide variety of phytochemical constituents, which are secondary metabolites and are used either directly or indirectly in the pharmaceutical industry. 'For centuries, man has effectively used various components of plants or their extracts for the treatment of many diseases, including bacterial infections. In the present study methanol, chloroform and aqueous extracts of Cassia auriculata leaf were subjected for antimicrobial activity by well-diffusion method against six bacterial strains namely Bacillus cereus, Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Proteus mirabilis. The results revealed that the methanol and chloroform extracts exhibited strong inhibitory activity against all the tested organisms (zone of inhibition of 12-20 mm), except Pseudomonas aeruginosa (zone of inhibition 10 mm or nil). The aqueous extracts showed moderate activity by 'Zone of inhibition ≤12 or nil). The extracts were screened for their phytochemical constituents by standard protocols' and were shown to contain carbohydrates, proteins, alkaloids, flavonoids, steroids, saponins and tannins. The antibacterial activity of these extracts is possibly linked to the presence of flavonoids, steroid, saponins and/or tannins. Further studies are needed to determine the precise active principles from Cassia auriculata.

In the domain of biological classification there are several taxon name matching services that can search for a species scientific name in a large collection of taxonomic names. Many of these services are available online, and many others run on computers of individual scientists. While these systems may work very well, most suffer from the fact that the list of names used as a reference, and the criteria to decide on a match, are hard-coded in the engine that performs the name matching. In this paper we present BiOnym, a taxon name matching system that separates reference namelists, search criteria and matching engine. The user is offered a choice of several taxonomic reference lists, including the option to upload his/her own list onto the system. Furthermore, BiOnym is a flexible workflow, which embeds and combines techniques using lexical matching algorithms as well as expert knowledge. It is also an open platform allowing developers to contribute with new techniques. In this paper we demonstrate the benefits brought by this approach in terms of the efficiency and effectiveness of the information retrieval process with respect to other solutions.

Background
Many postglacial lakes contain fish species with distinct ecomorphs. Similar evolutionary scenarios might be acting on evolutionarily young fish communities in lakes of remote islands. One process that drives diversification in island freshwater fish species is the colonization of depauperate freshwater environments by diadromous (migratory) taxa, which secondarily lose their migratory behaviour. The loss of migration limits dispersal and gene flow between distant populations, and, therefore, is expected to facilitate local morphological and genetic differentiation. To date, most studies have focused on interspecific relationships among migratory species and their non-migratory sister taxa. We hypothesize that the loss of migration facilitates intraspecific morphological, behavioural, and genetic differentiation between migratory and non-migratory populations of facultatively diadromous taxa, and, hence, incipient speciation of island freshwater fish species.

Results
Microchemical analyses of otolith isotopes (88Sr, 137Ba and 43Ca) differentiated migratory and non-migratory stocks of the New Zealand endemic Gobiomorphus cotidianus McDowall (Eleotridae). Samples were taken from two rivers, one lake and two geographically-separated outgroup locations. Meristic analyses of oculoscapular lateral line canals documented a gradual reduction of these structures in the non-migratory populations. Amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) fingerprints revealed considerable genetic isolation between migratory and non-migratory populations. Temporal differences in reproductive timing (migratory = winter spawners, non-migratory = summer spawners; as inferred from gonadosomatic indices) provide a prezygotic reproductive isolation mechanism between the two ecotypes.

Conclusion
This study provides a holistic look at the role of diadromy in incipient speciation of island freshwater fish species. All four analytical approaches (otolith microchemistry, morphology, spawning timing, population genetics) yield congruent results, and provide clear and independent evidence for the existence of distinct migratory and non-migratory ecotypes within a river in a geographically confined range. The morphological changes within the non-migratory populations parallel interspecific patterns observed in all non-migratory New Zealand endemic Gobiomorphus species and other derived gobiid taxa, a pattern suggesting parallel evolution. This study indicates, for the first time, that distinct ecotypes of island freshwater fish species may be formed as a consequence of loss of migration and subsequent diversification. Therefore, if reproductive isolation persists, these processes may provide a mechanism to facilitate speciation.

Approximately two-dozen species in three genera of the Neotropical suckermouth armored catfish family
Loricariidae are the only described fishes known to specialize on diets consisting largely of wood. We
conducted a molecular phylogenetic analysis of 10 described species and 14 undescribed species or morphotypes
assigned to the wood-eating catfish genus Panaqolus, and four described species and three
undescribed species or morphotypes assigned to the distantly related wood-eating catfish genus
Panaque. Our analyses included individuals and species from both genera that are broadly distributed
throughout tropical South America east of the Andes Mountains and 13 additional genera hypothesized
to have also descended from the most recent common ancestor of Panaqolus and Panaque. Bayesian and
maximum likelihood analyses of two mitochondrial and three nuclear loci totaling 4293 bp confirmed
respective monophyly of Panaqolus, exclusive of the putative congener ‘Panaqolus’ koko, and Panaque.
Members of Panaqolus sensu stricto were distributed across three strongly monophyletic clades: a clade
of 10 generally darkly colored, lyretail species distributed across western headwaters of the Amazon
Basin, a clade of three irregularly and narrowly banded species from the western Orinoco Basin, and a
clade of 11 generally brown, broadly banded species that are widely distributed throughout the
Amazon Basin. We erect new subgenera for each of these clades and a new genus for the morphologically,
biogeographically and ecologically distinct species ‘Panaqolus’ koko. Our finding that perhaps half of the
species-level diversity in the widespread genus Panaqolus remains undescribed illustrates the extent to
which total taxonomic diversity of small and philopatric, yet apparently widely distributed,
Amazonian fishes may remain underestimated. Ranges for two Panaqolus subgenera and the genus
Panaque overlap with the wood-eating genus Cochliodon in central Andean tributaries of the upper
Amazon Basin, which appear to be a global epicenter of wood-eating catfish diversity.

Corydoras guapore was described from the rio Guaporé, Rondônia State, Brazil, based only in three specimens, two of
them merely examined alive in an aquarium and apparently not preserved posteriorly. The current location of these two
paratypes is uncertain. In the original description, no standard diagnosis was presented and the descriptive information
available is scarce and based only in external morphology. Thus, the aim of this study is to provide a redescription of C.
guapore based in several topotypes. Corydoras guapore can be distinguished from its congeners by the presence of a short
mesethmoid, with the anterior tip poorly developed; posterior margin of pectoral spine with conical serrations directed
towards the origin of the spine; and by the lateral portion of caudal peduncle almost entirely blackened. Information about
C. guapore ecology and conservation status are also provided.

The cichlids of Africa present many challenges to the taxonomist. Diverse systematic problems at three levels in cichlid phylogeny form the subject matter of this dissertation. At the most general level, I summarize current morphological evidence that supports cichlid monophyly and the most-inclusive groups of cichlids. With this review as a framework, I argue that the most phylogenetically primitive African cichlid is Heterochromis multidens, a little-known large cichlid from the Zaire River basin. I redescribe this monotypic genus and species and illustrate much of its osteology. It possesses a distinctive suite of derived characters, but is uniquely primitive among African cichlids in infraorbital morphology and other features.

At a less inclusive phylogenetic level, I examine the controversy over the monophyletic status of the "species flock" of haplochromine cichlids in Lake Malawi. A derived type of anal-fin markings present in a subset of the Malawian fauna is shared with many non-Malawian haplochromines, indicating that the species flock of Lake Malawi is not monophyletic. The two (or more) faunal components of Lake Malawi are ecologically distinct.

The remaining major parts of the study are concerned with particular assemblages of haplochromine cichlids in Lake Malawi. I present a detailed phylogenetic analysis of the Cyrtocara livingstonii species-group of ambush predators, and characterize a new species in the group. I also describe three new species of haplochromines with three lateral spots and present a key to the three-spot assemblage. Intralacustrine dispersion of Malawi cichlids is briefly addressed in appended material.

Alburnoides manyasensis, sp. n., is described from the Koca Stream (Lake Manyas drainage, Marmara Sea basin) in Anatolia. It is distinguished from all species of Alburnoides in Turkey and adjacent regions, Alburnoides tzanevi (Rezovska [Rezve], Istranca and Terkos streams in the western Black Sea drainage), Alburnoides cf. smyrnae (Banaz Stream, a drainage of Büyük Menderes River, Aegean Sea basin), Alburnoides fasciatus (streams and rivers in the eastern Black Sea drainage) and Alburnoides eichwaldii (Kura and Aras rivers [a drainage of Kura River], Caspian Sea basin) by a combination of the following characters (none unique to the species): marked hump at nape, especially in specimens larger than 60 mm SL; partly developed ventral keel between pelvic n and anal n, scaleless 1/2 to 2/3 its length; body depth at dorsaln origin 29−32% SL; caudal peduncle depth 11−12% SL; 45-52+ 2-3 lateral-line scales; 9-12 scale rows between lateral line and dorsal-n origin; 4-5 scale rows between lateral line and anal-n origin, 10½-12½ branched anal-n rays; 40-42 total vertebrae.

A new unicuspid-toothed armored catfish species of Hypostomus is described from the Bodoquena Plateau, rio Paraguai basin, Mato Grosso do Sul State, Brazil. The new species is distinguished from its congeners, with exception of H. fonchii, by having unicuspid teeth (vs. bicuspid teeth); from H. fonchii it is distinguished by having median series of lateral lates with 26-27 (vs. 28); by lower number of premaxillary and dentary teeth (7-10 vs. 18-21; 8-13 vs. 18-25, respectively); for possessing more depressed head (head depth 15.8-18.1% SL vs. 19.1-22.0% SL); and by the presence of median buccal papilla (vs. absence).

Three new species of saddled hypostomine loricariids are described. According to a recent phylogenetic analysis, these species are members of the genus Peckoltia. The species differ from all described Peckoltia except P. furcata and P. sabaji by having the dentaries meet at an angle greater than 90°. The species also have similarities to Hemiancistrus, and can be separated from all described species by having dorsal saddles. We discuss the taxonomy of Peckoltia, Hemiancistrus, and allied genera and recognize Ancistomus as valid for P. feldbergae, H. micrommatos, Ancistrus snethlageae, H. spilomma, and H. spinosissimus. We recommend descriptions of genera for several clades of Hemiancistrus and restriction of Hemiancistrus to the type spe- cies of the genus, H. medians. Chaetostomus macrops is transferred to Pseudancistrus and recognized as a junior synonym of P. megacephalus. The Hemiancistrus annectens group of species (H. annectens, H. argus, H. aspidolepis, H. fugleri, H. holostictus, H. maracaiboensis, H. panamensis, H. wilsoni) are recognized in Hypostomus. Multivariate analysis reveals that the newly described species differ from one another in shape space, but overlap broadly with other Peckoltia (P. lujani), narrowly with other Peckoltia (P. greedoi), or broadly with Etsaputu (P. ephippiata).

Changes in fish fauna, fish conditions and some physico-chemical features of water of Lake Ula which was established for irrigation purposes and subjected to introduction of non-native fishes were investigated. Six different fish species were found, five of them belong to Cyprinidae family; common carp Cyprinus carpio L., 1758, gibel carp Carrassius gibelio (Bloch, 1782), goldfish Carassius auratus (L., 1758), chub Squalius cephalus (L., 1758) and gizani Ladigesocypris ghigii (Gianferrari, 1927). The other species found was eastern mosquitofish Gambusia holbrooki Girard, 1859 from Poeciliidae family. Fulton's body condition values varied between 0.99 (chub) and 1.48 (gibel carp). Two Carassius species (non-native species) had significantly the higher condition values than those of other species (P<0.001). Comparison of condition data of chub and common carp from present study and published work in 1999 revealed no significant differences (t-test, P>0.05). Some physico-chemical features of water were compared and no big differences were detected between 1998 and 2009.

In this study, we successfully assembled the complete mitochondrial genome of the Amu Darya sturgeon Pseudoscaphirhynchus kaufmanni. Based on this mitochondrial genome and previously published mitochondrial genomes of members of the Acipenseridae family, we assessed the phylogenetic position of P. kaufmanni using maximum likelihood and Bayesian inference for phylogeny reconstruction. The resultant phylogenetic trees were well‐resolved, with congruence between different phylogenetic methods. This robust phylogenetic analysis elucidated the relationship among the four acipenserid genera and strongly supported the division of the family into three main clades. Evaluation of molecular phylogeny using maximum likelihood and Bayesian analysis led to the following conclusions: (a) the most basal position within the Acipenseridae remains in the clade containing Acipenser oxyrinchus and Acipenser sturio; (b) the genus Scaphirhynchus belongs to the Atlantic clade and is a sister group of the remaining species of the clade; and (c) the close relationship between P. kaufmanni and Acipenser stellatus is well supported.

1. Data from the two multidisciplinary surveys of Lake Kinneret (Israel), including acoustic surveys of fish concentrations and concurrent sampling of plankton at stations, were used to reconstruct fish and plankton distributions. No significant lake-wide correlations for the distribution fields were found. With respect to patchiness of the fish and plankton distributions, we hypothesized that they might be correlated in localized zones.
2. A method is suggested for the identification of areas where there are strong correlations of two distribution fields. The method is based on outlining zones where the gradients of the two fields of interest are in the same direction (or are opposite). Only areas larger than the autocorrelation circles (or ellipses) for the fields are considered. The correlation of the fields is calculated for each of the zones selected.
3. The method was used in analysing data from the multidisciplinary surveys. We were able to detect areas of the lake where there were correlations for fish and plankton distributions. Analysis of specific conditions inside the correlation zones made it possible to construct hypotheses concerning the causes for the observed patterns of fish and plankton distributions.

We report a new species, Oxynoemacheilus fatsaensis, from the Elekçi Stream, a small stream that flows to the Black Sea in Northern Turkey. It is distinguished from other Oxynoemacheilus species in the Black Sea, Upper Euphrates, and Kura-Aras River basins by having a suborbital groove in males, an axillary lobe at the pelvic-fin base, no dorsal adipose crest on the caudal peduncle, a deeply emarginate caudal fin, small inner and outer rostral barbels, and mottled flank pattern. Molecular data suggest that the new species is separated by a minimum p-distance of 3.3% from O. banarescui in the mitochondrial DNA COI barcode region.

Listrura depinnai, new species, is described from a small swampy area belonging to Laguna dos Patos system, Municipality of Viamão, Rio Grande do Sul state, southern Brazil. It occurs within the wildlife reserve Refú gio de Vida Silvestre Banhado dos Pachecos, and represents the southernmost record of the glanapterygine catfishes. The new species is easily distinguished from remaining Listrura by having the following putative autapomorphies: the region below the midline of flank covered by several spots (vs. unpigmented or with a slender row of small spots); the caudal peduncle at procurrent-ray folds deeper than the preanal portion of body (vs. approximately the same depth); and the presence of a conspicuous intumescence adjacent to the posterodorsal margin of the pectoral-fin base (vs. swelling slight or absent). Putative phylogenetic positions of Listrura depinnai are herein discussed.

This paper introduces a new similarity measure based on edge counting in a taxonomy like WorldNet or
Ontology. Measurement of similarity between text segments or concepts is very useful for many
applications like information retrieval, ontology matching, text mining, and question answering and so on.
Several measures have been developed for measuring similarity between two concepts: out of these we see
that the measure given by Wu and Palmer [1] is simple, and gives good performance. Our measure is
based on their measure but strengthens it. Wu and Palmer [1] measure has a disadvantage that it does not
consider how far the concepts are semantically. In our measure we include the shortest path between the
concepts and the depth of whole taxonomy together with the distances used in Wu and Palmer [1]. Also the
measure has following disadvantage i.e. in some situations, the similarity of two elements of an IS-A
ontology contained in the neighbourhood exceeds the similarity value of two elements contained in the
same hierarchy. Our measure introduces a penalization factor for this case based upon shortest length
between the concepts and depth of whole taxonomy.

A new species of Corydoras is described from the lower rio Paraná basin, just downstream from Itaipu Dam, Brazil, close to Paraguay boundary. The new species can be distinguished from most of its congeners by the infraorbital 2 with a posterior laminar expansion conspicuously reduced, first and second dorsal-fin branched rays conspicuously elongated in males, mesethmoid entirely covered by skin, and by the presence of four to six irregular black or brownish blotches on the midline of the flank. The probable occurrence of the new species in the floodplain of the upper portion of the rio Paraná drainage is discussed.

A new species of Hyphessobrycon Ellis is described from tributaries of the upper rio de Contas, Bahia, Brazil. The new species
can be diagnosed from its congeners by having low body depth, a broad black stripe along lateral of body that extends weakly
through median caudal-fin rays, absence of humeral spot and orange- to reddish life coloration.

Cyphocharax pinnilepis, a species of curimatid characiform apparently endemic to the Rio de Contas system in Bahia,
Brazil, is described as new. It is only the sixth member of the Curimatidae known from the coastal rivers of Brazil across
the expanse from south of the mouth of the Amazon River to the state of Sa˜o Paulo, but the third curimatid species
from the Rio de Contas. The basis for the assignment of the species to Cyphocharax is discussed, and it is diagnosed from
congeners on details of pigmentation, the pattern of scales on the lobes of the caudal fin, meristics, and
morphometrics.

Paddlefish Polyodon spathula was recently found in the lower River Danube of Serbia. Its introduction in the Danube is most likely to result from fish escaping from Romanian or Bulgarian rearing facilities where it was introduced in the 1990's. It now occurs as far up as the Iron Gate II (863 -862 km from the Black Sea) and appears to have acclimatised to the lower River Danube.

The family Galaxiidae is represented in Chile by five species. The state of knowledge of them is in general scarce except in the case of G. maculatus due to its economical value. On the other hand, G. globiceps is the less known of them because it has been recorded in two localities, in Los Alerces, near Puerto Montt, the type locality and the Chiloe island. The last record of only one specimen from Chiloe National Park reinforces the previous idea of its scarcity and rarity in the southern part of Chile.

The aim of this work is to reevaluate the current conservation status of G. globiceps through the revision of works on freshwater fishes of southern Chile.

The general conclusion of this work states that G. globiceps deserves the state of being in danger of extintion.

KEYWORDS: G. globiceps, Galaxiidae, Conservation status, Chile.

A checklist of the fishes of Kerala State is presented, along with their scientific and common names (English and Malayalam), endemism, IUCN Red List status, listing under different Schedules of the Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act and in the Appendices of Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna (CITES). Nine Hundred and five species of fishes are recorded from the inland and marine waters of Kerala comprising of 41 orders and 172 families. Close to 30% of the freshwater fish species found in Kerala are endemic to the State. Only 8% of the total fishes of Kerala are listed as threatened in the IUCN Red List, of which the majority are freshwater species. Several hundred fish species occurring in the marine waters of Kerala have not yet been assessed for their conservation status by IUCN.

Three new species of Alburnoides, Alburnoides emineae sp. n., Alburnoides velioglui sp. n., Alburnoides recepi sp. n., are described from the Euphrates River drainages (Persian Gulf basin) in eastern Anatolia, Turkey. Alburnoides emineae, from Beyazsu Stream (south-eastern Euphrates River drainage), is distinguished from all species of Alburnoides in Turkey and adjacent regions by a combination of the following characters (none unique to the species): a well developed ventral keel between pelvic and anal fins, commonly scaleless or very rarely 1-2 scales covering the anterior portion of the keel; a deep body (depth at dorsal-fin origin 31-36% SL); 37-43 + 1-2 lateral-line scales, 13½-15½ branched anal-fin rays; number of total vertebrae 41-42, modally 41, comprising 20-21 abdominal and 20-21 caudal vertebrae. Alburnoides velioglui, from Sırlı, Karasu, Divriği and Sultansuyu streams (northern and northeastern Euphrates River drainages), is distinguished by a poorly developed ventral keel, completely scaled; a moderately deep body (depth at dorsal-fin origin 24-29% SL); 45-53 + 1-2 lateral-line scales, 11½ -13½ branched anal-fin rays; number of total vertebrae 41-42, modally 42, comprising 20-22 abdominal and 20-21 caudal vertebrae. Alburnoides recepi, from Merzimen Stream (southern Euphrates River drainage), is distinguished by a well developed ventral keel, completely scaleless; a deep body (depth at dorsal-fin origin 29-34% SL); 47-56 + 2-3 lateral-line scales; 13½-16½ branched anal-fin rays; number of total vertebrae 38-40, comprising 19-21 abdominal and 18-20 caudal vertebrae.

This preliminary study was conducted from March 2011 to November 2011 to evaluate the fish fauna of River Panjkora at District Dir Upper Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. During the study eleven fish species were identified. These species were belonging to four orders including Cypriniformes, Channiformes, Salmoniformes and Siluriformes, and four families including Cyprinidae, Channidae, Salmonidae and Sisoridae. Cyprinidae was the richest family represented by seven fish species consisting of Schizothorax esocinus, Racoma labieta, Orienus plagiostomus, Crossocheilus diplocheilus, Gara gotyla, Barilius pakistanicus and Carassius auratus. The family Sisoridae was embodied to two species namely Gagata cenia and Glyptothorax punjabensis. The family Channidae and Salmonidae were comprised of one species each, Channa punctata and Oncorhynchus mykiss respectively. It was concluded that River Panjkora at District Dir Upper has got high fish biodiversity and has got potential to be utilized for culturing various other cold water fishes.

The present preliminary study was undertaken to study the diversity and distribution of Ichthyofauna of Rhound stream, a tributary of river Panjkora, at District Lower Dir Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. Fish sampling was carried out using different types of nets, of various mesh sizes and hooks. A total of 369 fishes were collected from April through September 2013. During the study period fourteen fish species were recorded comprising of four orders including Cypriniformes, Channiformes, Siluriformes and Mastacembeliformes, and five families. Taxonomically, Cyprinidae was the richest family represented by eleven fish species including Crossocheilus diplocheilus (17.073%), Barilius pakistanicus (16.531%), Gara gotyla (13.921%), Cyprinion watsoni (7.859%), Schizopyge esocinus (7.317%), Racoma labiata (7.317%), Cyprinus carpio (5.149%), Barilius vagra (4.607%), Barilius modestus (2.981%), Puntius sophore (2.439%) and Puntius ticto (0.813). Family Channidae, Mastacembelidae and Sisoridae were embodied to one species each, Channa punctatus (5.691%), Mastecembelus armatus (5.42%) and Glyptothorax punjabensis (2.981%) respectively. Present study concludes

Two new characid species, Astyanax epiagos, from the upper rio Jacuípe, rio Paraguaçu basin, and A. jacobinae, from the
upper rio Itapicuru-mirim, rio Itapicuru basin, Chapada Diamantina, Bahia, Brazil, are described. Astyanax epiagos is
distinguished from the majority of its congeners and from all Astyanax known to occur in northeastern Brazilian drainages
by the reduced number of branched anal-fin rays (usually 14-16), along with a series of other distinctive characters
(e.g., vertically elongated humeral blotch, conspicuous dark blotch over caudal peduncle, absence of conspicuous midlateral
dark stripe, body highest around vertical through midlength of pectoral-fin, absence of scales over anal-fin base,
presence of broad naked space between infraorbitals and preopercle). Astyanax jacobinae differs from its congeners by a
combination of morphometric, meristic, and pigmentary characters (e.g., large eye diameter, three maxillary teeth, presence
of a vertically elongated humeral blotch, absence of a conspicuous dark midlateral stripe or conspicuous spot over
caudal peduncle, absence of broad naked space between infraorbitals and preopercle).

Following the first publication on vertebrates of India (Blanford 1888–1890), a huge wealth of information has been compiled on the vertebrate fauna of various biogeographic zones of the country, especially the Western Ghats. The state of Kerala comprising of a land area of 38,863km2, 590km coastline, an intricate system of backwaters along the coast, tropical moist forests of the Western Ghats, the highly undulating terrain, and the tropical monsoon is a unique geographical and environmental entity rich in biodiversity. A region-specific checklist that summarises and documents the current status of vertebrate diversity provides benchmark data for documentation and appreciation of biodiversity at regional level. Further, with the current rate of global biodiversity loss and concordant conservation efforts, the taxonomic community has a greater responsibility to make scientific information available to scientists, policy makers, politicians, research students and all relevant stakeholders, an attempt that has been made in the present paper. The State of Kerala has 1847 species of vertebrates in 330 families and 81 orders, of which 386 are endemic to the Western Ghats region (of the Western Ghats - Sri Lanka Hotspot), and 205 species as threatened. Six hundred and eighty species of vertebrates of Kerala have been listed in the various schedules of the Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act, while 148 are listed in the different appendices of CITES.

A study on the fishes of Bajaur agency was conducted from 2004 to 2010. A total of sixteen (16) fish species were identified belonging to 4 orders, 5 families and 12 genera. Family Cyprinidae was the richest family represented by nine species viz, Puntius ticto, Puntius conchonius, Barilius modestus, Barilius pakistanicus, Barilius vagra, Crossocheilus diplocheilus, Salmophasia punjabensis, Carassius auratus and Schizothorax plagiostomus. Family Nemacheilidae was represented by three species Triplophysa naziri, Schistura alepidota and Naemacheilus pakistanicus whereas two species Channa gachua and Channa punctatus of Family Channidae were also identified. Family Mastacembelidae and Sisoridae were represented by a single specie viz, Mastacembelus armatus, and Glyptothorax punjabensis respectively. Most fishes collected from this area are of great economic importance and local people rely on them as a source of cheap, rather cost free protein.

In order to analyse the intra-and interpopulation homogeneity/heterogeneity of the pikeperch (Stizostedion lucioperca), the phenotypic variability of morphological characters was estimated on the basis of a biometric analysis of 31 morphometric and 10 meristic characters in 284 specimens collected at four different sections along the Yugoslav sector of the Danube, during 1986Danube, during -1989. An ANCOVA of morphological characters, with fish size as a covariate, was performed for analysed samples and between males/females and adults/juveniles respectively. Comparison was also made with the pikeperch samples from the Dnepr and the West Dvina ). The results were tested with a GT2-method for multiple unplanned comparison of means, or with a t-test where appropriate. The differentiation between populations from three geographically distinct and isolated areas (Danube-Dnepr-Dvina) is much greater than between the four samples from the Danube. The results of the variability analysis of morphological characters and known pikeperch habits (first of all having in mind the so-called "homing" effect -returning to the same spawning place from year to year), suggest that the four samples from the Yugoslav part of the Danube most probably represent four distinct populations. The presence of reproductive isolation still has to be proved through experimental marking. Since this analysis takes into account only the phenotypic variation, it would be necessary to study the genetic differentiation between populations, as well, by biochemical or DNA-sequencing methods.

This paper communicates the extension of the distribution range of Batasio merianiensis in Sille River in the upper Brahmaputra drainage, East Siang District, Arunachal Pradesh. Detailed examinations of the specimens revealed existence of few morphological variations against those reported by Heok Hee Ng in 2009 on the following characteristics: by having a longer preanal (70.4-73.4 vs. 66.3-68.2% SL); a longer prepectoral (25.1-29.3 vs. 21.4-25.7% SL); a longer adipose-fin base (22.0-27.6 vs. 16.9-22.2% SL); a shorter post-adipose distance (11.6-13.4 vs.13.4-15.5% SL); a deeper body at anus (depth 18.3-20.8 vs.15.2-18.4% SL) and broader head (width 17.6-20.0 vs.13.5-16.2 % HL). Few additional characters of the fish are included along with brief information on its habitat. The LIPUM, the semitraditional method of fishing in the river is identified as a major threat to this species.

Trichomycterus cubataonis, from the Cubatão river, southern Brazil, is re-described and revalidated. It is hypothesized as closely related to T. diabolus, T. itatiayae, T. maculosus and T. nigroautarus based on the presence of a broad metapterygoid, which is wider than deeper. Trichomycterus cubataonis differs from the above four species by the number of pectoral, dorsal, and anal-fins rays, origin of anal fin related to the dorsal-fin base, insertion of pelvic-fin related to the vertebrae, origin of dorsal-and anal fins related to the vertebrae, number of dorsal and ventral procurrent rays of caudal fin, number of odontodes of the opercular and interopercular patch, length, depth and width of the head, and eye size. Moreover, T. cubataonis differs from T. zonatus mainly by the insertion of pelvic-fin related to the vertebrae, origin of dorsal-and anal fins related to the vertebrae, number of anal fin rays, and the position of the anal fin related to the dorsal-fin base. Therefore, T. cubataonis should be considered a valid species.