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News: Researchers have found two new subterranean fish species, Gitchak nakana and Rakthamichthys anchi, from wells in Assam.
About Gitchak nakana and Rakthamichthys anchi
- Gitchak nakana and Rakthamichthys anchi are blind, subterranean fish species found in groundwater environments.
- Found in: Both species were discovered in wells in Goalpara district, Assam, in areas dominated by alluvial deposits.
About Gitchak nakana
- Gitchak nakana is a blind freshwater fish (loach).
- Distribution: It was discovered in Goalpara, Assam.
- It marks the first record of a groundwater-dwelling fish in Northeast India.
- Similar subterranean fishes were previously known mainly from the lateritic lowlands of the Western Ghats.
- Family: It belonging to a new genus within the family Cobitidae.
- Naming: The name comes from the Garo language.
- Gitchak refers to its striking red colour, while nakana refers to a blind fish.
- Key Features:
- Size: It is a tiny fish measuring about 2 centimetres in length.
- Appearance: Its transparent body allows its blood and internal organs to give it a blood-red appearance.
- Skull Structure: It has no skull roof, leaving an opening covered only by skin.
- Threats: People may mistake it for a worm or a harmful creature and kill it.
- Pollution, groundwater extraction and possible exploitation also threaten such species.
About Rakthamichthys anchi
- Rakthamichthys anchi is a newly described phreatobiotic synbranchid eel belonging to the family Synbranchidae (swamp eel family).
- It is the second species of this genus recorded from Northeast India, after Rakthamichthys rongsaw of Meghalaya.
- Naming: ‘Anchi’ and ‘Raktham’ mean blood in Garo and Malayalam, respectively, while ‘ichthys’ means fish in Greek.
- Distribution: It is endemic to India.
- It was discovered in Goalpara district, Assam.
- Habitat: It inhabits groundwater aquifers in alluvial deposits.
- Key Features:
- Size: It is measures approximately 310 mm in length.
- Appearance: It has a slender, eel-like body and shares characteristics with Gitchak nakana.
- Adaptation: These fishes have a low metabolic rate and can survive for months without food after feeding.
- Phreatobiotic: It lives exclusively within the groundwater zone of aquifers, particularly in underground, water-filled spaces.
- Threats: Pollution, groundwater extraction and human killing due to lack of awareness pose risks to this species.
