Scientists have spotted a bizarre cave fish that is blind, has a protruding unicorn-like structure, and lacks pigmentation and scales.
Bizarre Species From the "Sinocyclocheilus" Genus
Live Science reports that the newly dicovered fish was found hiding inside a pure black pool that is as big as a kitchen table. Its appearance is strikingly unique, as it has no color or scales and has rudimentary eyes that may not be able to see anything. Another striking feature of this creature is that it has a remarkably big horn proceeding from its forehead.
The bizarre fish species, now called S. Longicornus, was found while researchers were checking cave fish from the Sinocyclocheilus genus. Fish that belong to this genus are native to China. They can usually be spotted in small pools of water that are completely dark.
According to Sci.News, there are 76 species discovered under this genus, with 71 of these categorized further into five groups of species.
Several of these species share striking similarities with this new and bizarre one. However, there are only some fish from this species that have horns. Others, on the other hand, have also completely lost their eyes due to regressive evolution. There are also some fish species from this genus that dwell in lighted waters and do not have unusual characteristics that are linked to their bizarre relatives.
This fish was found swimming in a cave pool that is 2.6 feet deep and 5.9 feet wide. The cave is inside Guizhou Province.
Individual fish species were collected by the team for them to study in their laboratory. They were unaware during this time that the fish they gathered was a species that had never been seen before. Upon performing comparisons with this new fish species with other discovered species and looking into its DNA, the researchers found out the gravity of their discovery. Their study was included in the ZooKeys journal.
This newly discovered fish is seen to have a length of 4.1 to 5.7 inches. They have two barbels that are whisker-like that they use to navigate through the dark. What makes them interesting is their unusual unicron-like structure, which is not present in close relative fish species and is seen to have no functional value.
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Unique Unicorn-Like Horn
Such structures are largely different from other Sinocyclocheilus species that thrive in the dark. They have different lengths and could be non-forked or forked. Given that species that live in the light do not have these horn structures, such protruding structures may be linked to life in the dark. However, the researchers still find the presence and purpose of these horns unclear.
Nevertheless, the newfound fish's unusual horn size, along with the fact that the species is not a close relative of other species with long horns, shows that longhorns may have emerged among species in the genus at two different times.
Hence, assessing the environmental circumstances of S. Longicornus and comparing it with the environments of other fish species with long horns may shed light on the value of these unusual structures.
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