Metahomaloptera Chang

[[Metahomaloptera Chang]]

The hillstream loach genus Metahomaloptera was erected by Chang (1944), with M. omeiensis as the type species. Chang (1944) identified Metahomaloptera using the following characters: “head and anterior part of body greatly depressed and ventrally flattened; snout broad, rounded, and trenchant; eye superolateral, with free orbital margin; mouth inferior, crescent-shaped, and of moderate size, with 8 barbels, 4 rostral and 4 maxillary; upper lip narrow, with single row of papillae; both jaws provided with sharp horny edges; gill-opening very small, crescent-shaped, situated entirely above the base of pectoral; pectoral fin with 20-23 rays; pelvic fin with 17-21 rays.” Xie, et al. (1984) described a subspecies of Metahomaloptera omeiensis, M. o. hangshuiensis, from a tributary of the upper Yangtse River. At present, only one species of Metahomaloptera has been recorded from the upper Yangtse River. Chen (1990) recorded M. omeiensis omeiensis in Yanjin and Weixin, Yunnan Province, China. He also added a note regarding a specimen of Metahomaloptera collected in Fumin County, Yunnan, China, and listed some differences between this specimen and M. omeiensis omeiensis, but lacking enough material, did not describe it as a new species.