Sinocyclocheilus
| Sinocyclocheilus | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Cypriniformes |
| Family: | Cyprinidae |
| Subfamily: | Cyprininae |
| Genus: | Sinocyclocheilus P. W. Fang, 1936 |
| Type species | |
| Sinocyclocheilus tingi P. W. Fang, 1936
| |
| Synonyms | |
|
Anchicyclocheilus Li & Lan, 1992 | |
Sinocyclocheilus is a genus of freshwater cyprinid fish endemic to the karst landscapes of southwestern China, predominantly in the provinces of Guizhou, Yunnan, and the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. Almost all of its species live in or around caves and most of these have adaptions typical of cavefish such as a lack of scales, lack of pigmentation and reduced eyes (some are completely blind). Several species have an unusual hunchbacked appearance and some of the cave-dwellers have a "horn" on the back (above the forehead), the function of which is unclear. In contrast, the non-cave or surface-associated lineages within the genus lack many of these highly specialized features. Adult sizes vary across species, but many reach up to ~23 cm (9.1 in) in total length. Many species are highly restricted in range (often to single caves or cave systems) and have small populations. Conservation status of evaluated species is often of concern, while many species populations in the genus have yet to be evaluated by the IUCN.
The type species is S. tingi. The name is derived from the Latin word sino, meaning "from China", and the Greek word kyklos, meaning "circle", and the Greek word cheilos, meaning "lip".