|
|
|
SHARE:
|
|
|
|
|
|
Picture of the world's smallest fish
Rhett A. Butler, mongabay.com
January 26, 2006
|
|
|
Paedocypris progenetica, the world's smallest fish on record, is a member of the carp family. The fish has a see-through body and a head that is unprotected by a skeleton. Photo courtesy of Maurice Kottelat, Carnol, Switzerland and Raffles Museum
|
Scientists have found the smallest known fish in the peat swamps of Sumatra, an island in Indonesia, according to research published in Proceedings B, a journal put out by the UK's Royal Society.
Individuals of the Paedocypris genus—members of the carp family—can be just 7.9mm long at maturity. Paedocypris feed on plankton in pools of extremely acidic water in tropical forest swamps.
Lead researcher, Dr Maurice Kottelat of the National University of Singapore, says the species has "a very rudimentary skull", which leaves the brain exposed. The team also found a related Paedocypris species, P. micromegethes, in Sarawak in Malaysian Borneo.
Kottelat warn that these tiny fish are at great risk of extinction die to the rapid destruction of Indonesian peat swamps for oil palm plantations. According to Dr Susan Page at the University of Leicester, at the current rate of burning, peatlands in Borneo, Sumatra and Papua New Guinea could be destroyed before 2040, releasing a vast amount of carbon into the atmosphere.
The transparent Paedocypris progenetica.
Photo by Dr Tan Heok Hui.
CITATION:
Rhett A. Butler, mongabay.com (January 26, 2006). Picture of the world's smallest fish. http://news.mongabay.com/2006/0126-smallest_fish.html
|
Tags:
Fish strange species discovery new species peatlands asia biodiversity indonesia green
print
News index | RSS | News Feed | Twitter | Home
Advertisements:
Organic Apparel from Patagonia | Insect-repelling clothing
|
|
|
WEEKLY NEWSLETTER
SUPPORT
Mongabay.com seeks to raise interest in and appreciation of wild lands and wildlife, while examining the impact of emerging trends in climate, technology, economics, and finance on conservation and development (more)
Help support mongabay.com when you buy from Amazon.com
|
|
POPULAR PAGES
Photos
HIGH RESOLUTION PHOTOS / PRINTS
CALENDARS
Mount Kenya
East Africa Safari Wildlife
Kenya's Turkana People
Peru
African Wildlife
Alaska
China
Madagascar Chameleons
CANVAS BAGS
Hallucinogenic frog bag
Madagascar wildlife bag
|
|
|
