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| Pangio bhuji
Anoop, Britz, Arjun, Dahanukar & Raghavan, 2019
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Abstract
A unique, new species of eel loach, Pangio bhujia, is described from Kerala, India. It is the first species of Pangio to be described from subterranean waters. It possesses several unusual characters including absence of both dorsal and pelvic fins, the presence of only 3 pectoral-fin rays, 6 anal-fin rays and a unique count of 38 precaudal + 24 caudal vertebrae.
Keywords: Pisces, aquifers, freshwater fishes, hypogean, Kerala, Western Ghats
Pangio bhujia, new species
Etymology. The species name bhujia was inspired by the resemblance of this species to the widely known
Indian snack ‘Bhujia’, small noodle-like pieces, usually made of moth beans (Fabaceae: Vigna aconitifolia), besan
and spices.
V.K. Anoop, Ralf Britz, C.P. Arjun, Neelesh Dahanukar and Rajeev Raghavan. 2019. Pangio bhujia, A New, Peculiar Species of Miniature Subterranean Eel Loach Lacking Dorsal and Pelvic Fins from India (Teleostei: Cobitidae). Zootaxa. 4683(1); 144–150. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4683.1.8
