Re-description of Balitora yingjiangensis (Teleostei, Cypriniformes, Balitoridae) from the upper Irrawaddy River, south-western China

By

Lei, Hao-Tian
Pu, Xin-Rui
Geng, Yinmin
Zeng, Yu-Yang
Liu, Shuwei
Chen, Xiao-Yong

Type

Article

Date of Publication

2025-7-11

Original Publication

Biodiversity data journal

Volume

13

Pages

1--23

Subjects

Balitora , Balitoridae , Biodiversity , freshwater fish , Irrawaddy River , Morphology , Phylogeny

Contributed by

Pensoft Publishers

Language

English

Published by

Sofia Pensoft Publishers [2013]-

Identifiers

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3897/BDJ.13.e153915

 

Abstract

The genus Balitora Grey, 1830 (Teleostei, Cypriniformes, Balitoridae) includes 20 species, with two known species distributed in the Salween River and one in the Irrawaddy River.<br> A Balitora species from the Irrawaddy River, Balitora yingjiangensis, which was previously mistakenly classified as Hemimyzon, is re-described through examination of type specimens and collection of topotypic specimens from the Jieyanghe River, a tributary of the Irrawaddy River in Nabang Town, Yingjiang County, Yunnan Province, China. Balitora yingjiangensis differs from all congeners by the following combination of characters: one pair of maxillary barbels; short predorsal length, 43.48%-36.13% SL; slender caudal peduncle, length of caudal peduncle 3.71-4.47 times of depth; shallow caudal peduncle, height of which 4.14%-4.84% SL. Molecular phylogenetic analysis supports the validity of this species and suggests a wide distribution throughout the Chinese and Burmese Irrawaddy. Balitora burmanica is not distributed in the Irrawaddy River, previous records of which from Chinese literature are mistaken records of B. yingjiangensis.