Pseudophoxinus anatolicus

Common name. Giant spring minnow.

Diagnosis. Distinguished from other species of Pseudophoxinus in Central Anatolia by: ● last unbranched dorsal ray spinous and thickened / ○ 85–109+2–3 scales in lateral series / ○ lateral line complete, gradually reaching to lateral midline at caudal peduncle / ○ pelvic not reaching to anus / ○ 11–12½ scales between lateral line and pelvic origin / ○ pelvic axillary lobe absent / ○ no keel between posterior end of pelvic base and anus / ○ pelvic origin below dorsal origin / ○ upper lip projecting beyond tip of lower lip / ○ flank plain brown or grey in adults, with prominent or weak stripe in juveniles. Size up to 240 mm SL.

Distribution. Türkiye: Ereğli marshes, Lake Hotamis, Beyşehir and Suğla basins.

Habitat. Lakes and streams with dense vegetation and stagnant or slow-flowing water.

Biology. Lives up to 5 years, potentially longer.

Conservation status. VU; abundant and commercially important in Lakes Beyşehir and Suğla before the 1970s. After drainage of Lake Suğla, extensive alteration of water bodies in Ereğli marshes, and introduction of Sander lucioperca into Lake Beyşehir, restricted to very few sites. Population in Ereğli-Akgöl is suspected to have been extirpated since 2018.

Remarks. Pseudophoxinus caralis is a synonym.

Further reading. Bogutskaya 1992 (revision, distribution); Freyhof & Özuluğ 2010c (P. caralis); Demirci 2016 (age).