Anatolichthys splendens

Common name. Gölcük 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 38–46 total, overlapping scales along lateral series / ● male with black bars equally shaped, not wider at dorsal part / ○ 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 / ○ male with white anal with wide, black margin or completely black. Size up to 38 mm SL.

Distribution. Türkiye: Lake Gölcük west of Isparta.

Habitat. Lacustrine.

Biology. No data. Expected to be similar to other Anatolichthys. In laboratory, larvae hatch after 12 days at an incubation temperature of 24°C.

Conservation status. Extinct; invasive Sander lucioperca, Cyprinus carpio and Carassius auratus caused the extinction of this species in the early 1980.

Remarks. Anatolichthys saldae, a species endemic to Lake Salda, is often treated as a population of A. splendens.

Further reading. Kosswig & Sözer 1945 (description); Yoğurtçuoğlu & Freyhof 2018 (identification).