Cobitis laterstriata sp. nov., a spined loach from East China (Actinopterygii, Cypriniformes, Cobitidae)

A new spined loach, Cobitis laterstriata , is described from the Shuiyangjiang River (a primary tributary of the Yangtze River) in Anhui Province and the Tianmuxi River (a tributary of the Changhuaxi River) in Zhejiang Province, China. Currently, only eight species of Cobitis that lack sexual dimorphism and the Gambetta pattern have been recorded in China. This new species also belongs to this small group and can be distinguished from the eight known congeners by the following key characters: 1) dorsum with dense irregular cloud-like blotches, a clear blank zone above the mid-lateral line below blotches, a distinct black mid-lateral stripe from the posterior margin of the operculum to the caudal-fin base, and 10–15 irregular black blotches directly ventral; 2) lower lip separated from the mandible, and mental lobes well developed 3) short caudal peduncle; 4) 19–20 pre-pelvic myotomes; 5) dorsal fin with six branched rays, and anal fin with four branched rays. Molecular phylogenetic analyses based on the cytochrome b gene also confirmed the validity of this new species.