Brown Mudfish
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The brown mudfish (''Neochanna apoda'') is a galaxiid endemic to
New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...
. The species is found in wetlands in the southwest of the
North Island The North Island ( , 'the fish of Māui', historically New Ulster) is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, islands of New Zealand, separated from the larger but less populous South Island by Cook Strait. With an area of , it is the List ...
and the northern half of the west coast of the
South Island The South Island ( , 'the waters of Pounamu, Greenstone') is the largest of the three major islands of New Zealand by surface area, the others being the smaller but more populous North Island and Stewart Island. It is bordered to the north by ...
. It commonly grows to 100–130 mm in length, and it can live to at least 7 years. They are named for their brown color. The
dorsal Dorsal (from Latin ''dorsum'' ‘back’) may refer to: * Dorsal (anatomy), an anatomical term of location referring to the back or upper side of an organism or parts of an organism * Dorsal, positioned on top of an aircraft's fuselage The fus ...
and
anal fin Fins are moving appendages protruding from the body of fish that interact with water to generate thrust and help the fish swim. Apart from the tail or caudal fin, fish fins have no direct connection with the back bone and are supported o ...
s of the brown mudfish are very long-based, extending close to the
caudal fin Fins are moving appendages protruding from the body of fish that interact with water to generate thrust and help the fish swim. Apart from the tail or caudal fin, fish fins have no direct connection with the back bone and are supported only ...
, nearly joining it. It inhabits shallow swamp-forest wetlands. If the water dries out over summer, it is able to aestivate in damp areas, such as under logs and in root holes, until the water returns. In 2014, the New Zealand Department of Conservation classified the brown mudfish as "At Risk: Declining" with qualifier "C(1/1) >100,000 mature individuals, predicted decline 10–70%". Also in 2014 the
IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. Founded in 1948, IUCN has become the global authority on the status ...
rated the brown mudfish as "Endangered".


References

* * NIWA Fish Atla
NIWA June 2006


External links



TerraNature, Auckland 2010 Neochanna Endemic freshwater fish of New Zealand Taxa named by Albert Günther Fish described in 1867 {{Galaxiidae-stub