Anatolichthys saldae (Aksiray, 1955)

Freyhof, JÖrg, Yoğurtçuoğlu, Baran, Jouladeh-Roudbar, Arash & Kaya, Cüneyt, 2025, Handbook of Freshwater Fishes of West Asia, De Gruyter : 712-713

Anatolichthys saldae

Common name. Salda killifish.

Diagnosis. Distinguished from other species of Anatolichthys by ○ 1–3 lines of large, usually not or only slightly overlapping scales on midlateral flank / ● usually no or few isolated scales on flank, up to 47–52 total, not or very slightly overlapping scales along lateral series / ● male with black bars wider at dorsal part, narrower at ventral part / ○ no or few isolated scales on flank except midlateral row / ○ scales on back and belly absent / ○ lateral head profile almost quadratic, lower jaw large, directing upward / ○ body depth 4.0–5.3 times in standard length. Size up to 50 mm SL.

Distribution . Türkiye: Lake Salda.

Habitat . Lacustrine. Forages in open water; spawns on gravel beds near shore. Overwinters in deeper parts of lake. Lake Salda is oligotrophic with a very high concentration of magnesium carbonate (MgCO 3).

Biology. Live up to 3 years, mature within a year. Pelagic and offshore, outside spawning season. Non-nuptial males and females form large schools, even during spawning season spawns April to September. Males establish territories along shore, usually between gravel and rocks, which they defend against rivals. Female spawn with one or more males on gravel bottoms. Few eggs are laid in the substrate during a spawning event. Individual females may produce several clutches in a single day. Feeds on small benthic and planktonic invertebrates.

Conservation status. CR; Water abstraction and reduced rainfall due to climate change are critical threats to salinity levels in Lake Salda and could lead to its rapid extinction in the near future.

Remarks. Often treated as a synonym of A. splendens .

Further reading. Akşıray 1955 (description); Geiger et al. 2014 (phylogeny); Yoğurtçuoğlu & Freyhof 2018 (identification); Yoğurtçuoğlu 2019 (reproduction).

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Anatolichthys saldae

Distribution

Habitat