Clarias cavernicola
Species of air-breathing catfish
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Clarias cavernicola,[2] the cave catfish,[3] is a critically endangered species of airbreathing catfish.[1] This cavefish is only known to live in the Aigamas cave, Otjozondjupa region, Namibia.[4][3] The golden cave catfish lack pigmentation and are up to 16.1 cm (6.3 in) in standard length.[3] They have very small eyes that are covered with skin, and are probably effectively blind.[3] They feed on detritus and invertebrates that fall into the lake in which they live. The population is estimated at 200–400 individuals.[5] Little is known about its reproduction, and attempts to breed it in captivity have failed.[6] The population is threatened by chance events and water extraction from the cave lake, which has resulted in a drop of the water level.[1]
| Clarias cavernicola | |
|---|---|
| |
| A cave catfish underwater in a dark environment | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Siluriformes |
| Family: | Clariidae |
| Genus: | Clarias |
| Species: | C. cavernicola |
| Binomial name | |
| Clarias cavernicola Trewavas, 1936 | |
It is the only known cavefish in mainland Southern Africa.[7]
