Review of the genus Cobitis in the Middle East, with the description of eight new species (Teleostei: Cobitidae)
Author
Freyhof, Jörg
Author
Bayçelebi, Esra
Author
Geiger, Matthias
text
Zootaxa
2018
2018-12-21
4535
1
1
75
journal article
27727
10.11646/zootaxa.4535.1.1
a047bcd9-ab65-4e3f-b07a-c830c7af1072
1175-5326
2615773
ABE9DB1F-7378-4571-90C4-A3FDB66527F3
Cobitis linea
(Heckel, 1848)
(
Fig. 18
)
Acanthopsis linea
Heckel, 1848: 267
(
type
locality:
Iran
: creeks around Persepolis [Marvdasht Plain, about
70 km
northeast of Shiraz]).
Material examined.
FSJF 2240
,
15
,
38–100
mm
SL;
Iran
:
Fars
prov.:
River Kor
about
10 km
south of
Dashtak
, 30.193 52.465
.—
FSJF 3219
,
8
,
32–39
mm
SL;
Iran
:
Shiraz prov.
:
Malous
spring
10 km
north of
Shiraz
, 29.877 52.481
.
Material used in molecular genetic analysis.
FSJF
DNA-1982
,
Iran
:
Shiraz prov.
:
Malous
spring
10 km
north of
Shiraz
, 29.877 52.482. (GenBank accession numbers:
KP
050530
,
KP
050539
)
.
Diagnosis.
Cobitis linea
is distinguished from
C. avicennae
and
C. kellei
, two other species from the Persian Gulf basin, by having two laminae circularis in the male (vs. one). It is distinguished from
C. elazigensis
, the only other
Cobitis
species in the Persian Gulf basin having two laminae circularis, by the lack of an axillary pelvic lobe (vs. present) and the blotches in Z4 very small and roundish or comma-shaped along its whole length, densely set, often fused to short stripes or dissociated into an open field of several rows of small spots and blotches (vs. blotches in Z4 irregularly squarish, between vertical of pectoral-fin origin and dorsal-fin base, roundish and usually widely spaced posterior to the dorsal-fin base, not fused into stripes).
Cobitis linea
is distinguished from
C. evreni
and
C.
levantina
by the blotches in Z4 very small and roundish or comma-shaped along the flank, densely set, often fused to short stripes or dissociated into a field of several rows of blotches (vs. blotches horizontally elongate or squarish anterior to the dorsal-fin origin, fused into a stripe in some
C. levantina
, Z4 is formed by a dark-brown stripe reaching from above the pectoral-fin base until the anus or beyond in
C. evreni
).
Cobitis linea
is further distinguished from
C.
evreni
by the presence of the black spot at the uppermost caudal-fin base (vs. absent) and from
C.
levantina
by the maxillary barbel reaching the vertical of the front margin or the middle of the eye (vs. not reaching).
Distribution.
Cobitis linea
is endemic to the Kor River drainage, an endorheic basin in Central
Iran
.
Remarks.
Molecular data (
Fig. 1
) place
Cobitis linea
in a species group with
C. aliyeae
,
C. anabelae
,
C. elazigensis
,
C. erkakanae
, and
C. levantina
. Based on DNA barcoding it is well separated from all other included
Cobitis
and by a minimum K2P distance of 4.7% to
C. elazigensis
, also supported as PTP entity.
See below for details to distinguish
C. linea
from other species in the
C. linea
species group.