Oreonectes qinae (Teleostei, Cypriniformes, Nemacheilidae), a new loach species from Guangxi, China

2025/10/15 by Zhuo-Ni Chen, C. M. Mo, Li-Na Du +1 · 1 voice · 1 citation
Agricultural and Biological Sciences · Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology · Environmental Science · #Fish Biology and Ecology Studies #Identification and Quantification in Food #Ichthyology and Marine Biology

paper · pdf · doi:10.3897/zookeys.1255.158447

openalex publication_date 2025/10/15 · openalex created_date 2025/10/16 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/02

Abstract

A new species of loach, Oreonectes qinae sp. nov. , was collected in December 2024 from Guangxi Gutingshan Forest Park, Liuzhou City, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, China. The new species can be distinguished from all other congeners by a suite of morphological characters, including a dorsal-fin origin posterior to the pelvic-fin origin, a degenerated posterior chamber of the swim bladder, and an incomplete lateral line, with 11–13 lateral-line pores. Phylogenetic analysis based on mitochondrial cytochrome b ( Cytb ) gene sequences confirmed its separation, with uncorrected p -distances ranging from 1.4% to 8.7% compared to closely related species. The discovery of Oreonectes qinae sp. nov. reflects the hidden diversity within Oreonectes in the complex karst landscapes of Guangxi and emphasizes the need for further investigation and conservation of these cryptic freshwater species.

Citations

• Molecular Systematics of Xenocyprinae (Teleostei: Cyprinidae): Taxonomy, Biogeography, and Coevolution of a Special Group Restricted in East Asia
• MrBayes 3.2: Efficient Bayesian Phylogenetic Inference and Model Choice Across a Large Model Space
• MEGA11: Molecular Evolutionary Genetics Analysis Version 11
• Traccatichthys punctulatus sp. nov., a new species of stone loach (Pisces, Nemacheilidae) from Guangxi, southern China
• MEGA7: Molecular Evolutionary Genetics Analysis Version 7.0 for Bigger Datasets

Cited by

• Description of a new species of Oreonectes (Cypriniformes, Nemacheilidae) from Guangxi, China

Discussions

• Ichthyology•2025 Oreonectes qinae•A New loach Species (Cypriniformes, Nemacheilidae) from Guangxi, China doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1255.158447 #Cavefish #Cypriniformes #Freshwater #Ichthyology #Fish #Ph [bsky, 0 points, 0 comments]

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