Oxynoemacheilus banarescui (Delmastro, 1982)

Oxynoemacheilus banarescui View in CoL View Figure

Common name. Paphlagonian sportive loach.

Diagnosis. Distinguished from other species of Oxynoemacheilus in the Black Sea basin by: ○ caudal–peduncle depth 7–10 % SL, usually 2.0–3.0 times in its length, very rarely 1.6–3.0, without high adipose crest or ridge / ○ caudal emarginate, middle caudal ray 80–90 % of length of longest ray in upper caudal lobe / ○ lateral line complete / ○ flank covered by scales / ○ suborbital groove present in male / ○ one central or no black, grey or brown blotch or short bar on caudal base, its colour identical to blotches on caudal peduncle / ○ no yellowish triangles at posteriormost portion of caudal peduncle / ○ pelvic very long, reaching or almost reaching to anus / ○ pectoral in male very long, reaching or almost reaching to pelvic origin / ○ flank mottled or with large, irregularly shaped, squarish, or vertically elongate blotches, usually as wide or narrower than interspaces / ○ lateral blotches on caudal peduncle usually interrupted in size and/or shape at or above lateral midline. Size up to 78 mm SL.

Distribution View Figure . Türkiye: Filyos and Devrekani drainages in Black Sea basin.

Habitat View Figure . Fast-flowing streams and rivers with gravel or rock substrate.

Biology. No data.

Conservation status. LC.

Remarks. No external characters are known to distinguish this species from O. bergianus , O. fatsaensis , and O. simavicus , all of which are diagnosed by molecular characters. As these four species are allopatric, the distribution area should help in identification.

Further reading. Delmastro 1982 (description); Yoğurtçuoğlu et al. 2020a (distribution); Freyhof 2022 (revision of O. bergianus group).