Sabanejewia caspia (Eichwald, 1838)

Sabanejewia caspia View in CoL View Figure

Common name. Liman golden loach.

Diagnosis. Distinguished from Sabanejewia aurata by: ● a narrow, irregularly shaped stripe along lateral midline often overlaid by small blotches or short bars / ● an irregularly shaped band of brown pigments below lateral stripe. Size up to 92 mm SL.

Distribution View Figure . Caspian basin: Lowermost Kura in Azerbaijan, Kyzylagach Bay south of Kura estuary, brackish lagoons in Lenkoran region, Anzali wetland, and lowermost Sefid in Iran. Caspian Sea at Durnev Islands and estuaries of Ural and Emba in Kazakhstan.

Habitat. Lowermost part of rivers and coastal waters. In still or very slow-flowing, often brackish waters.

Biology. Spawns in April in brackish lagoons of Lenkoran. Feeds on detritus and benthic invertebrates.

Conservation status. EN; appears to be declining within its very small range.

Further reading. Berg 1949b (description); Vasil’eva &Vasil’ev 2012 (distribution); Sayyadzadeh et al. 2018a (description).