The Hypogean fishes of China

Authors: Aldemaro Romero Yahui Zhao Xiaoyong Chen

Publish Date: 2009/04/15

Volume: 86, Issue: 1, Pages: 211-278

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Abstract

China has 92 described species of hypogean cave and artesian fishes That is nearly one third of all the described hypogean fish species 299 more than any other country Of all Chinese hypogean fishes 56 species show troglomorphisms ie adaptations that have been correlated to the hypogean environment such as reduction and/or loss of eyes pigmentation and the gas bladder Additionally two other characters seem to be unique to some Chinese hypogean species presence of a hornlike structure and hyperdevelopment of the dorsal protuberance similar to a humpback Despite the fact that the first written account of a cave fish was for species found in China in 1540 Romero 2001 and Introduction to this special volume almost all the new descriptions have taken place in the last 20 years mostly in papers written in Chinese and/or in journals of difficult access outside China This paper summarizes all the knowledge we have on the hypogean fishes of China and puts them in context regarding all the hypogean fishes in the worldThis study was funded by the projects of the National Natural Sciences Fund of China NSFC30470251 and NSFCJ0030092 to Y Zhao and NSFC30730017 to X Chen and Basic Research Program of China 973 Program 2007CB411600 to X Chen Many thanks go to Zhang C IZB for providing some suggestions and necessary stuffs Appreciation to Ye E IZB Lan J Du’an Fishery Bureau He M KIZ and Li J KIZ for taking some pictures Thanks to David LG Noakes for editorial suggestions

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