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| Chiloglanis carnatus Mutizwa, Bragança & Chakona, in Mutizwa, Kadye, Bragança, Bere et Chakona, 2024. |
Abstract
The recent surge in the discovery of hidden diversity within rheophilic taxa, particularly in West and East Africa, prompted a closer examination of the extent to which the current taxonomy may obscure the diversity of riffle-dwelling suckermouth catfishes in the genus Chiloglanis in southern Africa. Currently, the region comprises eight valid species within this genus. Seven of them have relatively narrow geographic distribution ranges except for C. neumanni, which is considered to be widely distributed, occurring from the Buzi River system in the south, and its northern limit being the eastward draining river systems in Tanzania. Recent surveys of the middle Zambezi River system revealed Chiloglanis specimens that were distinguishable from the known species of the genus from southern Africa. Integration of molecular and morphological data indicated that these specimens from the Mukwadzi River represent a new species to science, herein described as Chiloglanis carnatus Mutizwa, Bragança & Chakona, sp. nov. This species is readily distinguished from its southern African congeners by the possession of a distinctive extended dermal tissue covering the base of the dorsal fin and the possession of ten mandibular teeth (vs 8, 12, or 14 in the other taxa). Results from this study add to the growing evidence of a high level of undocumented diversity within riffle-dwelling taxa in southern Africa.
Key words: Diversity, freshwater, integrative taxonomy, rheophilic taxa, southern Africa
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| Holotype of Chiloglanis carnatus sp. nov., SAIAB 236631 male (A–E) and female paratype specimen SAIAB 211346 (F–K). Scale bars: 1 cm. |
Chiloglanis carnatus Mutizwa, Bragança & Chakona, sp. nov.
Diagnosis: Chiloglanis carnatus sp. nov. is readily distinguished from its congeners in southern Africa (i.e. C. anoterus, C. bifurcus, C. emarginatus, C. fasciatus, C. paratus, C. pretoriae and C. swierstrai) by the presence of a dorsal fin that has a basal portion covered by a fleshy skin, a character which is absent in the other species. Chiloglanis carnatus possesses ten closely packed mandibular teeth, that further distinguishes it from C. fasciatus that has eight closely packed mandibular teeth; C. bifurcus and C. emarginatus that have ...
Etymology: The specific epithet carnatus means fleshy, referring to the dermal tissue covering the base of the dorsal fin of some of the larger specimens of this species and the general robust body structure of this species compared to its regional congeners.
Tadiwa I. Mutizwa, Wilbert T. Kadye, Pedro H. N. Bragança, Taurai Bere and Albert Chakona. 2024. Hidden in the Riffles: A New Suckermouth Catfish (Mochokidae, Chiloglanis) from the middle Zambezi River system, Zimbabwe. ZooKeys. 1197: 57-91. DOI: 10.3897/zookeys.1197.114679
