The relict dace (''Relictus solitarius'') is a species of freshwater

ray-finned fish Actinopterygii (; ), members of which are known as ray-finned fish or actinopterygians, is a class of bony fish that comprise over 50% of living vertebrate species. They are so called because of their lightly built fins made of webbings of sk ...

belonging to the

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Leuciscidae Leuciscidae is a family of freshwater ray-finned fishes, formerly classified as a subfamily of the Cyprinidae, which contains the true minnows. Members of the Old World (OW) clade of minnows within this subfamily are known as European minnow ...

, which includes the daces, chubs, Eurasian minnows and related fishes. This fish occurs in the

Great Basin The Great Basin () is the largest area of contiguous endorheic watersheds, those with no outlets to the ocean, in North America. It spans nearly all of Nevada, much of Utah, and portions of California, Idaho, Oregon, Wyoming, and Baja Californi ...

of western

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

. It is the only species in the

monotypic genus 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 "unispe ...

''Relictus''. Relict dace coloration is variable, but generally dusky overall, with olive and brassy shades dorsally. An obvious speckling pattern with patches ranging from brown to green, and yellowish narrow stripes appear on the back and belly. Lower fins are often yellow, and may be a bright golden shade. The oblique mouth is terminal, and lacks horny cutting edges. The fins are rather small and rounded, with the pelvic fins being especially notable for their paddle shape. The variations on the basic cyprinid plan seem to be characteristic of desert fishes evolving in isolation, with the body adapting for midwater swimming in quiet water. The relict dace occurs in only a handful of habitats in eastern Nevada, all of which were once covered by the prehistoric Lake Lahontan. Locations include the springs of Buttle and Ruby Valleys, and the drainage systems of Franklin Lake and Gale Lake.

References

* William F. Sigler and John W. Sigler, ''Fishes of the Great Basin'' (Reno: University of Nevada Press, 1987), pp. 200–203 {{Taxonbar, from=Q3232230 Leuciscinae Fish of the United States Fish described in 1972