Seminemacheilus ahmeti Sungur, Jalili, Eagderi & Çiçek 2018

(Figs. 7–8)

Seminemacheilus ahmeti Sungur, Jalili, Eagderi & Çiçek, 2018:467, Figs. 1–4, 5b, 6b, 7b (type locality: Sultan Sazlığı near Yeşilova Village, Kızılırmak Basin, Kayseri Province, Turkey, 38.2014, 35.2221)

Material examined. FFR 15562, 4, 47–57 mm SL; FSJF 2604, 20, 33–54 mm SL; Turkey: Kayseri prov.: spring Soysallı west of Soysallı, 38.3902, 35.3656 .— FSJF 2501, 4, 32–38 mm SL; Turkey: Kayseri prov.: canal north of Senir at road to Sultan Sazlığı National Park, 38.2013, 35.2525 .

Material used in molecular genetic analysis. FSJF DNA-986; Turkey: Kayseri prov.: canal north of Senir at road to Sultan Sazlığı National Park, 38.2013, 35.2525. (GenBank accession numbers: MT077012, MT077013) .— FSJF DNA-956; Turkey: Kayseri prov.: spring Soysallı west of Soysallı, 38.3902, 35.3656. (GenBank accession numbers: KJ554681, KJ554757, MT077014, MT077015) .

Diagnosis. Seminemacheilus ahmeti is distinguished from all other species of Seminemacheilus by having many small black or brown dots or blotches on the belly (vs. absent) and the posterior naris reaching to the anterior eye margin when folded backward (vs. not reaching). It is further distinguished by a combination of characters. Seminemacheilus ahmeti is distinguished from S. ispartensis by lacking scales (vs. having deeply embedded scales on the caudal peduncle), having a roundish caudal fin (vs. truncate in S. lendlii and S. ispartensis), a long head (head length 24–27% SL vs. 21–24 in S. isparaensis), and 2–5 supraorbital head pores (vs. 5–8 in S. lendlii; 6–10 in S. ispartensis).

Distribution. Seminemacheilus ahmeti is endemic to Sultan Sazlığı, an endorheic basin in Central Anatolia.

Remarks. Based on DNA barcoding, S. ahmeti is well separated from all other studied Seminemacheilus species, and by a minimum K2P distance of 2.4% to S. ekmekciae, its closest relative. It is supported as a distinct species by the PTP approach, but not by the mPTP delimitation. Seminemacheilus ahmeti is one of five fish ( Aphanius danfordii, Pseudophoxinus elizavetae, Oxynoemacheilus ciceki and Cobitis joergbohleni) endemic to Sultan Sazlığı (Freyhof et al., 2018). All these species are now restricted to very small habitat patches, since the wetland has been drained and dried out in recent decades. This case triggers a high threat category for all the fish in Sultan Sazlığı, including S. ahmeti, making this small wetland a place of major importance for conservation.