Clarias cavernicola

Short description: An airbreathing cave catfish

Golden cave catfish

Conservation status

Critically Endangered (IUCN 3.1)[1]

Scientific classification
Kingdom:  | Animalia
Phylum:  | Chordata
Class:  | Actinopterygii
Order:  | Siluriformes
Family:  | Clariidae
Genus:  | Clarias
Species:  |

C. cavernicola

Binomial name
Clarias cavernicola

Trewavas, 1936

The golden cave catfish (Clarias cavernicola)[2] is a critically endangered species of airbreathing catfish.[3] This cavefish is only known to live in the Aigamas cave, Otjozondjupa region, Namibia.[4][5] It has also been reported from the nearby Dragon's Breath Cave.[6] The golden cave catfish lack pigmentation and are up to 16.1 cm (6.3 inches) in standard length.[5] They have very small eyes that are covered with skin, and are probably effectively blind.[5] They feed on detritus and invertebrates that fall into the lake in which they live. The population is estimated at 200–400 individuals.[7] Little is known about its reproduction, and attempts to breed it in captivity have failed.[8] The population is threatened by chance events and water extraction from the cave lake, which has resulted in a drop of the water level.[3]

It is the only known cavefish in mainland Southern Africa.[9]

## See also

* Caves of Namibia

## References

1. ↑ Bills, R. (2007). "Clarias cavernicola". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2007: e.T63363A12662977. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2007.RLTS.T63363A12662977.en. https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/63363/12662977. Retrieved 12 November 2021.
2. ↑ "Clarias cavernicola". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=681164. Retrieved 24 January 2006.
3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Bills, R. (2007). "Clarias cavernicola". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2007: e.T63363A12662977. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2007.RLTS.T63363A12662977.en. https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/63363/12662977. Retrieved 12 November 2021. Listed as Critically Endangered (CR B1+2c, E v2.3)
4. ↑ Cave catfish (Clarias cavernicola) at ARKive . Images of Life on Earth
5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Froese, Rainer and Pauly, Daniel, eds. (2011). "Clarias cavernicola" in FishBase. December 2011 version.
6. ↑ Proudlove, G.H. (2018–2019). "Clarias cavernicola". cavefishes.org.uk. https://cavefishes.org.uk/species-record.php?id=142.
7. ↑ Bruton, M. N. (1995). "Threatened fishes of the world:Clarias cavernicola Trewavas, 1936 (Clariidae)". Environmental Biology of Fishes 43 (2): 162. doi:10.1007/BF00002486.
8. ↑ "Clarias cavernicola". 2005-02-19. http://natmus.cul.na/projects/cave/clarias.html.
9. ↑ Aldemaro, R., editor (2001). The Biology of Hypogean Fishes. Developments in Environmental Biology of Fishes. ISBN 978-1402000768

## External links

* Image at the National Museum of Namibia

Wikidata ☰ Q3235269 entry

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