Checklist of cave and groundwater fishes
This checklist covers all of the known troglobiotic (or stygobiotic) fishes. These live their whole lives in caves, which have relatively large conduit sizes, or in groundwater aquifers where the conduit size is often smaller. Both are habitats of total and continuous darkness and this leads, directly or indirectly (it depends on who you ask), to the suite of adaptations known as troglomorphy. The most obvious troglomorphisms are the reduction of eyes and of melanin pigment, both of which can regress to entire absence in some species. In addition to these regressive feature are a variable number of progress troglomorphisms, for example the elaboration of the mechanosensory lateral-line system. There are many sources which discuss troglomorphy in great detail but the following recent works are the best to begin with: Wilkens and Stecker (2017), Keene, Yoshizawa and McGaugh (2016), White and Culver (2012), Culver and Pipan (2009), Culver and Pipan (2014) and Wilkens, Culver and Humphreys (2000), Assmann et al. (2010). A brief modern overview of the biology of subterranean fishes is provided by Borowsky (2018).
Order: Cypriniformes (150 species)
Suborder: Cobitoidei (83 species)
Family: Balitoridae (1 species)
Homaloptera thamicola
Family: Cobitidae (9 species)
Family: Nemacheilidae (73 species)
Noemacheilus smithiNemacheilus smithiParacobitis smithi
Noemacheilus evezardiNemachilus evezardiNemacheilus evazardiOreonectus evezardiNemacheilus aureus
Oreonectes acridorsalis
Noemacheilus starostiniNemacheilus starostiniTroglocobitis starostini
Noemacheilus sijuensisNemachilus sp.Nemachilus beavaniNoemacheilus multimexicanus
Sundoreonectes tiomanensisNoemacheilus sp. nov.
Noemacheilus gejiuensis
Noemacheilus xiangxiensis
Schistura dabryi microphthalmusClaea dabryi microphthalmus
Oreonectes daqikongensis
Oreonectes translucens
Oreonectes macrolepis
Oreonectes elongatus
Oreonectes barbatus
Paracobitis longibarbatusParacobitis posterodarsalusHomatula posterodarsalusHomatula maolanensisNemacheilus liboensisOreonectes liboensis
Triplophysa jiarongensis
Oreonectes furcocaudalis
Oreonectes microphthalmus
Oreonectes shuilongensis
Suborder: Cyprinoidei (67 species)
Family: Cyprinidae (66 species)
Barbus micropsPuntius microps
Eilichthys microphthalmusBarbopsis stefaniniiZaccarinia stefaninii
Phreatichthys andruzzii
Iranocypris typhlops
Typhlogarra widdowsoni
Barbus speleops
Sinocyclocheilus jinxiensis
Sinocyclocheilus guangxiensisSinocyclocheilus albeoguttatus
Gibbibarbus cyphotergous
Anchicyclocheilus halfibindusSinocyclocheilus halfibindus
Anchicyclocheilus altishoulderus
Sinocyclocheilus liboensisSinocyclocheilus dongtangensis
Bangana musaei
Family: Leuciscidae (1 species)
Order: Characiformes (3 species)
Suborder: Characoidei (3 species)
Family: Characidae (2 species)
Anoptichthys jordaniAnoptichthys antrobiusAnoptichthys hubbsiAstyanax fasciatusAstyanax mexicanus
Family: Acestrorhamphidae (1 species)
Order: Gymnotiformes (1 species)
Suborder: Sternopygoidei (1 species)
Family: Sternopygidae (1 species)
Order: Siluriformes (93 species)
Suborder: Loricarioidei (43 species)
Family: Astroblepidae (2 species)
Family: Callichthyidae (1 species)
Family: Loricariidae (6 species)
Family: Trichomycteridae (34 species)
Suborder: Siluroidei (50 species)
Family: Amblycipitidae (1 species)
Family: Clariidae (6 species)
Uegitglanis zammaranoi baidoaensis
Family: Heptapteridae (26 species)
Typhlobagrus kroneiPimelodella lateristriga var. kroneiCaecorhamdella brasiliensis
Caecorhamdia urichiCaecorhamdella urichiRhamdia quelen urichi
Family: Ictaluridae (4 species)
Family: Kryptoglanidae (2 species)
Family: Phreatobiidae (8 species)
Family: Siluridae (3 species)
Silurus cucphuongensis
Silurichthys sp.Silurus sp.Pterocryptes sp.
Order: Percopsiformes (16 species)
Suborder: Percopsiformes (16 species)
Family: Amblyopsidae (16 species)
Typhlichthys wyandotteAmblyopsis spelaea “N”Amblyopsis spelaea
Typhlichthys rosaeAmblyopsis rosaeAmblyopsis rosae whitaeAmblyopsis rosae arkansasus
Typhlichthys osborniTyphlichthys wyandotteTyphlichthys eigenmanni
Typhlichthys subterraneus
Typhlichthys subterraneus
Typhlichthys subterraneus
Typhlichthys subterraneus
Typhlichthys subterraneus
Typhlichthys subterraneus
Typhlichthys subterraneus
Typhlichthys subterraneus
Typhlichthys subterraneus
Typhlichthys subterraneus
Typhlichthys subterraneus
Order: Ophidiiformes (15 species)
Suborder: Bythitoidei (15 species)
Family: Bythitidae (12 species)
Lucifuga spelaeotes
Lucifuga dentatus var. holguinensisLucifuga holguinensis
Family: Dinematichthyidae (3 species)
Caecogilbia galapagosensis
Order: Gobiiformes (19 species)
Suborder: Gobioidei (19 species)
Family: Butidae (3 species)
Family: Eleotrididae (2 species)
Family: Gobiidae (9 species)
Family: Milyeringidae (5 species)
Milyeringa brooksi
Order: Synbranchiformes (10 species)
Suborder: Synbranchoidei (10 species)
Family: Synbranchidae (10 species)
Pluto infernalisFurmastix infernalisSynbranchus infernalis
Anomatophasma candidum
Monopterus indicusMonopterus “indicus”Monopterus eapeni
Monopterus roseni
Monopterus digressus
Monopterus rongsaw
Monopterus luticolus
Order: Cyprinodontiformes (1 species)
Suborder: Cyprinodontoidei (1 species)
Family: Poeciliidae (1 species)
Order: Perciformes (3 species)
Suborder: Cottoidei (3 species)
Family: Cottidae (3 species)
Cottus bairdii-cognatus complex
Cottus carolinae species group
Order: Anabantiformes (1 species)
Suborder: Channoidei (1 species)
Family: Aenigmachannidae (1 species)