''Parachiloglanis bhutanensis'', also known as the Khaling torrent catfish, is a species of catfish in the family
Sisoridae first described in 2014. Prior to its discovery, the genus
Parachiloglanis
''Parachiloglanis'' is a genus of catfish of the family Sisoridae.
Species
There are currently 5 recognized species in this genus:
* '' Parachiloglanis benjii'' Thoni & Gurung, 2018
*'' Parachiloglanis bhutanensis'' Thoni & Gurung, 2014 (Khali ...
was considered
monotypic
In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispec ...
.
Classification
''Parachiloglanis bhutanensis'' is the first fish species scientifically described within
Bhutan
Bhutan (; dz, འབྲུག་ཡུལ་, Druk Yul ), officially the Kingdom of Bhutan,), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is situated in the Eastern Himalayas, between China in the north and India in the south. A mountainous ...
, whereas ''
Parachiloglanis hodgarti
''Parachiloglanis hodgarti'', the torrent catfish, is a species of catfish of the family Sisoridae.
Distribution
''P. hodgarti'' inhabits the Ganges and Brahmaputra drainages in India, Bangladesh, Nepal, and China. It has also been listed from A ...
'' was found in
Pharping, Nepal. The common name, Khaling torrent catfish, refers to the village,
Khaling, in the
Trashigang District
Trashigang District ( Dzongkha: བཀྲ་ཤིས་སྒང་རྫོང་ཁག་; Wylie: ''Bkra-shis-sgang rdzong-khag''; also spelled "Tashigang") is Bhutan's easternmost dzongkhag (district).
Culture
The population of the district ...
of southeastern Bhutan where the stream in which it was discovered flows.
A subsequent study by Thoni & Gurung in 2018 identified two specimens in the
Bumdeling Wildlife Sanctuary
The Bumdeling Wildlife Sanctuary (also spelled Bumdelling or Bomdeling), which contains the former Kulong Chu Wildlife Sanctuary, covers in northeastern Bhutan at elevations between and . The sanctuary covers most of Trashiyangtse District ...
in the northeast of Bhutan, expanding the previously known range of the species to throughout the upper
Drangmechhu River.
Description
''Parachiloglanis bhutanensis'' has a brown, somewhat translucent body, with a pale yellow head. The average length of the specimens collected by Thoni & Gurung (2014) was 3 to 4 inches. The head is broad, blunt, and rounded, rising out of the body at roughly a 45-degree angle from the snout. Along the sides of the body, there is a lateral line of white pores.
''Parachiloglanis bhutanensis'' is different from the first Parachiloglanis species, ''Parachiloglanis hodgarti'', by the lateral white pores running the length of the body, and differs from the other genera in the subfamily Glyptosterninae by the absence of a post-labial grove on the lower lip.
Ecology
The first specimens of ''Parachiloglanis bhutanensis'' were discovered in the cascades of a small, fast-flowing stream, over 2,000 meters above sea level, while adhering to the underside of boulders. The initial streams near Khaling were fed by mountain springs, rainwater, and snow melted from nearby mountains, with very little algae. Thoni & Gurung speculated that the species evolved to a high-speed environment with paired fins to cling to rocks and a mouth that adapted to scraping invertebrates from the bottom of the streams.
References
External links
Parachiloglanis bhutanensis, a new species of torrent catfish (Siluriformes: Sisoridae) from Bhutan
''Ryan J. Thoni, Dhan Bdr. Gurung''. Parachiloglanis bhutanensis, a new species of torrent catfish (Siluriformes:Sisoridae) from Bhutan
{{Taxonbar, from=Q28780260
Sisoridae
Fish described in 2014
Catfish of Asia
Fish of Bhutan