Reassessment of the taxonomic position of Iranocypris typhlops Bruun & Kaiser, 1944 (Actinopterygii, Cyprinidae).
The Iranian cave barb (Iranocypris typhlops Bruun & Kaiser, 1944) is a rare and endemic species of the family Cyprinidae known from a single locality in the Zagros Mountains, western Iran. This species is "Vulnerable" according to the IUCN Red List and is one of the top four threatened freshwater fish species in Iran. Yet, the taxonomic position of I. typhlops is uncertain. We examined phylogenetic relationships of this species with other species of the family Cyprinidae based on the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene. Our results show that I. typhlops is monophyletic and is sister taxon of a cluster formed by Garra rufa (Heckel, 1843) and Garra barreimiae (Fowler & Steinitz, 1956) within a clade that includes other species of the genus Garra. Based on previous molecular and morphological studies, as well as our new results, we recommend that I. typhlops should be transferred to the genus Garra Hamilton, 1822.
Department of Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Natural Resources, University of Tehran, Iran.
Azita
A
Farashi
Department of Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Natural Resources, University of Tehran, Iran.
Mohammad
M
Kaboli
Department of Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Natural Resources, Gorgan University, Iran.
Hamid Reza
HR
Rezaei
Department of Agronomy and Plant Breeding, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, University of Tehran, Iran.
Mohammad Reza
MR
Naghavi
Department of Animal Biology, Faculty of Biology, University of Tehran, Iran.
Hassan
H
Rahimian
Canadian Museum of Nature, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.
Brian W
BW
Coad
Garra; Iranian cave barb; Iranocypris typhlops; phylogeny