Diggin' in water

Sometimes I think, “I bet everything has been discovered and described by now.” But then another bizarre creature suddenly pops up. Okay, we were actively hunting (in museums, that is) for this “thought-lost” species from Ethiopia, but still. When I first looked at the fish, I thought I was looking at a goby...

The preserved specimens were all in very poor condition, but luckily we were still able to select a few usable specimens.

We knew about the existence of this species and also knew it had ended up in Lothar Seegers’ collection. But where the fish had gone after he passed away? That remained a mystery. Eventually, we found them. With great difficulty, we were also able to determine the exact location of the habitat. And it turned out to be worth the effort. Unfortunately, there are no known living specimens, so no color description, but the remaining black markings indicate that it might be a very attractive species.

What makes it so special? Well... The head scales. They don’t, as usual, run from a point between the eyes to the dorsal fin. In this species, the first head scales are located in front of the eyes and run downward along the mouth. But that’s not all; they also have all sorts of hooks and filaments on the ends of those head scales. That’s why I thought it was a goby, or at least a fish that digs in the bottom, looking for food. They also have an upper jaw with horizontally arranged teeth. This is quite unusual for killies. A bizarre creature. But also a good example of how opportunistic killies are. They truly adapt to all kinds of circumstances. We have given these fish the appropriate name Eremodon yetateku. Etymology: yetateku (Amharic, the most spoken language in Ethiopia) = armored / panzer; referring to the unique placement of scales, with spiky filaments, on the snout.

Oh, right. While digging through Lothar’s collection, we also found a Pantanodon he’d caught. He was probably too busy with cichlids at the time and hadn’t noticed what a special fish this was. A Pantanodon with hooks not only on the pelvic fins, but also on the pectoral and caudal fins! Considering the number of people collecting killifish in Kenya, we might actually see this species in the aquarium in a few years. Ethiopia is unfortunately a problem area for travelers, so for now, we’ll have to make do with the preserved fish. We have also given this species a name that refers to its special characteristics: Pantanodon nyingi. Etymology: nyingi (Swahili) = multiple; referring to the multiple modified fins (i.e. pelvic, pectoral and anal fin with hooks, claws and spiky filaments in males; pectoral with knoblike ending in females) while all other Pantanodontidae only have hooks and claws on the male pelvic fins.

Well, then you start thinking again... What other crazy stuff will we discover?

Reference:
The full article about these new species and additional information on Micropanchax antinorii (Vinciguerra, 1883), can be found in:

Huber J.H. and E. Meinema (2025): Descriptions of Two New Spine Killifish: Eremodon yetateku n.sp. and Pantanodon nyingi n.sp. (Cyprinodontiformes; Pantanodontidae). Killi-Data Series 2025, 10-31, 15 figs., 3 tabs.