''Achondrostoma arcasii'', termed the bermejuela, 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. Eurasian minnows and related fishes. This species is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

to the northern

Iberian Peninsula The Iberian Peninsula ( ), also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in south-western Europe. Mostly separated from the rest of the European landmass by the Pyrenees, it includes the territories of peninsular Spain and Continental Portugal, comprisin ...

Taxonomy

''Achondrostoma arcasii'' was first formally described as ''Leucos arcasii'' in 1866 by the Austrian

ichthyologist Ichthyology is the branch of zoology devoted to the study of fish, including bony fish (Osteichthyes), cartilaginous fish (Chondrichthyes), and jawless fish (Agnatha). According to FishBase, 35,800 species of fish had been described as of March 2 ...

Franz Steindachner Franz Steindachner (11 November 1834 in Vienna – 10 December 1919 in Vienna) was an Austrian zoologist, ichthyologist, and herpetologist. He published over 200 papers on fishes and over 50 papers on reptiles and amphibians. Steindachner des ...

with its type locality given as the

Ebro River The Ebro (Spanish and Basque ; , , ) is a river of the north and northeast of the Iberian Peninsula, in Spain. It rises in Cantabria and flows , almost entirely in an east-southeast direction. It flows into the Mediterranean Sea, forming a del ...

Logroño Logroño ( , , ) is the capital of the autonomous community of La Rioja (Spain), La Rioja, Spain. Located in the north of the Iberian Peninsula, primarily in the right (South) bank of the Ebro River, Logroño has historically been a place of pa ...

La Rioja La Rioja () is an autonomous communities in Spain, autonomous community and provinces of Spain, province in Spain, in the north of the Iberian Peninsula. Its capital is Logroño. Other List of municipalities in La Rioja, cities and towns in the ...

and the

Queiles The Queiles is a tributary of the Ebro. Its arises in Vozmediano (Soria (province), Soria). It flows through Tarazona and empties into the Ebro near Tudela, Navarre. See also

* List of rivers of Spain Rivers of Spain Rivers of Castile ...

River at Tudela in

Navarre Navarre ( ; ; ), officially the Chartered Community of Navarre, is a landlocked foral autonomous community and province in northern Spain, bordering the Basque Autonomous Community, La Rioja, and Aragon in Spain and New Aquitaine in France. ...

, both in Spain. It is now classified as a valid species in the genus '' Achondrostoma'' within the

subfamily In biological classification, a subfamily (Latin: ', plural ') is an auxiliary (intermediate) taxonomic rank, next below family but more inclusive than genus. Standard nomenclature rules end botanical subfamily names with "-oideae", and zo ...

Leuciscinae Leuciscinae is a subfamily of freshwater Actinopterygii, ray-finned fishes belonging to the Family (biology), family Leuciscidae, which includes the fishes known as daces, chubs, shiners and minnows. The fishes in this subfamily are mainly found i ...

of the family

. The genus was proposed in 2007 for three species which were split from ''Chondrostoma'' on the basis of genetic evidence with this species designated as the

type species In International_Code_of_Zoological_Nomenclature, zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the spe ...

.A. garzonorum, A. asturicense and A. numantinum.

Etymology

''Achondrostoma arcasii'' belongs to the genus '' Achondrostoma'', this name places the prefix ''a-'', meaning "without", in front of the genus name ''

Chondrostoma ' (from the Ancient Greek roots (''khondros'') 'lump' + (''stoma'') 'mouth' = 'lump-mouth') is a genus of ray-finned fish in the family Leuciscidae. They are commonly known as nases, although this term is also used locally to denote particu ...

'', which is a combination of ''chondros'', a word meaning "gristle" or "cartilage", with ''stoma'', meaning "mouth". This is an allusion to the lack of the horny plates in the mouths of these fishes, which are present in ''Chondrostoma'' . The

specific name Specific name may refer to: * in Database management systems, a system-assigned name that is unique within a particular database In taxonomy, either of these two meanings, each with its own set of rules: * Specific name (botany), the two-part (bino ...

, ''arcasii'', honours Laureano Pérez Arcas, a Spanish

zoologist Zoology ( , ) is the scientific study of animals. Its studies include the structure, embryology, classification, habits, and distribution of all animals, both living and extinct, and how they interact with their ecosystems. Zoology is one ...

who shared specimens with Steindachner.

Description

''Achondrostoma arcasii'' differs from other species in its genus by having between 40 and 45 scales in its

lateral line The lateral line, also called the lateral line organ (LLO), is a system of sensory organs found in fish, used to detect movement, vibration, and pressure gradients in the surrounding water. The sensory ability is achieved via modified epithelia ...

; 4 or 5 scale rows are found between the lateral line and the origin of the

pelvic fin Pelvic fins or ventral fins are paired fins located on the ventral (belly) surface of fish, and are the lower of the only two sets of paired fins (the other being the laterally positioned pectoral fins). The pelvic fins are homologous to the hi ...

; the

caudal peduncle 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 ...

has 14 rows of scales around it; the diameter of the eye diameter is equal to or greater than the length of the snout, which is rounded and obtuse; and the ventral profile of head has no marked angle at the articulation of the lower jaw. The bermejuela has a maximum

total length Fish measurement is the measuring of individual fish and various parts of their anatomies, for data used in many areas of ichthyology, including taxonomy and fishery biology. Overall length Standard length (SL) is the length of a fish measured f ...

of , although is more typical.

Distribution and habiatat

''Achondrostoma arcasii'' is endemic to northeatsern Spain where it is found in rivers draining into the Mediterranean sea from the Francolí to the Túria, including the Ebro. The bermejuela is found in lakes and mountain streams, including the middle reaches of rivers. It can also occur in reservoirs in upland areas. The juveniles can be found in shallow stretches where there is a slow current and move to deeper and swifter stretches in late July.

Biology

''Achondrostoma arcasii'' mainly preys on aquatic invertebrates, although it is an opportunistic feeder and will eat detritus and plant matter. This species spawns in May and June.

Conservation

''Achondrostoma arcasii'' is classified as

Near Threatened A near-threatened species is a species which has been Conservation status, categorized as "Near Threatened" (NT) by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as that may be vulnerable to Endangered species, endangerment in the ne ...

by the

International Union for Conservation of Nature 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 stat ...

and is threatened by habitat degradation by pollution and the introduction of invasive species.

References

* {{Taxonbar, from=Q591612 arcasii Endemic fish of the Iberian Peninsula Fish described in 1866 Taxa named by Franz Steindachner Habitats Directive species