New catfish species sighted at Manimala river

T. Nandakumar
Thiruvananthapuram,  
The Hindu, October 13, 2014 

Scientists have reported a new species of catfish from the Manimala river in Kottayam district, highlighting the need for more efforts to unearth the rich biodiversity of the Western Ghats.

Mathews Plamoottil, Assistant Professor, Government College, Chavara, came across the fish in January, 2011, during an exploratory survey of the river at Chenappady, a middle-level region of the river.

Later, in collaboration with Nelson P. Abraham, Associate Professor, St. Thomas College, Kozhencherry, he subjected it to detailed comparison with related species of catfish before establishing it as a new species named Mystus keralai .

The finding has been published in the latest issue of the International Journal of Pure and Applied Zoology. Mystus keralai is distinguished by its long head, small eyes, narrow groove on the head, elongated pelvic fin, anal fin and pectoral fin, very long maxillary barbells (whisker-like organs near the mouth) and a distinct lateral light brownish green line.

The body is smooth and devoid of scales like others of the Mystus species.

Comparative studies

Comparative studies with fresh specimens of two related species, M. cavasius and M. seengtee , collected from the Ganges river in West Bengal and the Mananthavady river in Wayanad, revealed that M. keralai had enough distinguishing features.

The researchers also compared the specimen to eight other Mystus species found in water bodies across Kerala.

They found that local people regularly consumed M. keralai. They also received reports from local sources that the fish had greatly declined in numbers owing to the pollution of the river.

The authors have called for detailed scientific studies with more specimens to reveal the biological aspects of the fish.

The new species has received the Zoobank register number from the International Commission for Zoological Nomenclature, the scientific authority for naming new animals.

The specimens have been deposited in the museum of the Zoological Survey of India, Kolkata, for further research.