Thursday, January 25, 2018

[Ichthyology • 2017] Oxynoemacheilus ciceki • A New Nemacheilid Species (Teleostei, Nemacheilidae) from the Sultan Marsh, Kayseri Province, Turkey


Oxynoemacheilus ciceki  
Sungur, Jalili & Eagderi, 2017


Abstract
 A new species of nemacheilid fish, Oxynoemacheilus ciceki sp. n. is described from the Sultan Marsh, Kayseri Province, Turkey. The species differs from its congeners in the combination of the following characters: flank yellowish brown or pale gray with irregular spot; cheeks with numerous tiny spots; lacking scale; thinner caudal peduncle; complete lateral line; 4 central and 4 lateral pores in the supra-temporal canal; lower lip thick with a deep median interruption and marked furrows and small median incision in upper lip.

 Keywords: Freshwater fish, Taxonomy, Morphology, Loach.


Fig.1. Uncatalogued live specimen of Oxynoemacheilus ciceki sp. n., Turkey: Kayseri prov.: Sultan Marsh.


Oxynoemacheilus ciceki sp. n. 

Diagnosis: Oxynoemacheilus ciceki sp. n. is distinguished from the other species of Oxynoemacheilus in the Kızılırmak basin by a combination of characters, none of them unique. Oxynoemacheilus ciceki sp. n. is distinguished from O. angorae by having flank yellowish brown or pale gray with irregular spots (vs. yellowish with a mid-lateral row of horizontally elongated fused blotches), cheeks with numerous tiny spots (vs. without pigmentation), without scale (vs. scaled), shorter pelvic fin (11.3- 13.6 vs. 14.9-17.0 %SL), lower mouth width (16.0- 22.0 vs. 20.6-26.7 %HL).

Etymology: The new species is named after Prof. Dr. Erdoğan Çiçek, for his valuable contribution to the knowledge of freshwater fishes of Turkey.

Distribution: Oxynoemacheilus ciceki sp. n. is knowns only from the Sultan Marsh, Kayseri Province (Fig. 6). This species mostly found slowflowing parts of streams in the Sultan Marsh. Pseudophoxinus elizavetae, Aphanius marassantensis, Seminemacheilus lendlii and Cobitis sp. coexist in the type locality with Oxynoemacheilus ciceki sp. n.

Sevil Sungur, Paria Jalili and Soheil Eagderi. 2017. Oxynoemacheilus ciceki, New Nemacheilid Species (Teleostei, Nemacheilidae) from the Sultan Marsh, Kayseri Province, Turkey. Iranian Journal of Ichthyology. 4(4); 375-383.   DOI: 10.22034/iji.v4i4.258