 |
| Garra tashanensis
Mousavi-Sabet, Vatandoust, Fatemi & Eagderi, 2016
|
Abstract
A new cave fish locality is reported for Iran, and the first true cave species is described from the Tigris River drainage. Garra tashanensis, new species, from Tashan Cave, the Tigris River drainage in Iran, is distinguished from its congeners by the combination of characters, including lacking pigment and eyes, having a well-developed round mental disc, two pairs of barbels, a well-developed rostral cap, no obvious pores on lateral line, and rare scales on anterior body. Garra tashanensis sp. nov. furthers differs substantially in its DNA barcode from the subterranean congeners (K2P nearest-neighbor distance of 10.4% to G. lorestanensis and 11.8% to G. typhlops).
Keywords: Khuzestan Province, Iranocypris typhlops, Nemacheilus smithi, Middle East.
Garra tashanensis, sp. nov.
Distribution: Garra tashanensis sp. nov., is known from the Tashan Cave, the natural subterranean limestone cave of the Zagros Mountains ...in Tashan region, the Tigris River drainage, the Persian Gulf basin, about 35 km away from Behbahan City, Khuzestan Province, southwestern Iran (Fig. 7). After the Loven Cave and Simarreh River, the Tashan Cave is the third known locality for subterranean species in Iran. ...
Etymology: The species name tashanensis, treated as an adjective, is derived from Tashan region, where the Tashan Cave (the type locality of the new species) is located.
 |
| Figure 8. Tashan Cave, type locality of Garra tashanensis. Figure 9. Inside Tashan Cave, type locality of Garra tashanensis. Figure 10. Garra tashanensis in its natural habitat, in the Tashan Cave (the type locality). |
Hamed Mousavi-Sabet, Saber Vatandoust, Yaser Fatemi and Soheil Eagderi. 2016. Tashan Cave a new cave fish locality for Iran; and Garra tashanensis, A New Blind Species from the Tigris River Drainage (Teleostei: Cyprinidae). FishTaxa. (3); 133-148. fishtaxa.com/index.php/ft/article/view/1-3-3
