Salariopsis burcuae

Common name. Eastern freshwater blenny.

Diagnosis. Distinguished from other species of Salariopsis in West Asia by: ● tiny black dots on the cheek not organised in rows or bands / ● supraocular tentacle branched, short, not reaching to, rarely overlapping the 9 th circum-orbital sensory pore / ○ pores of lateral line with white circle / ○ black dots present on cheek and/or upper part of flank. Size upto 88 mmSL.

Distribution . Bay of Antalya (Türkiye) east to Jordan drainage (Israel), including Cyprus.

Habitat . Streams with moderate current and rocky bottom. Also in lakes, including reservoirs.

Biology. No data, but expected to be similar with S. fluviatilis .

Conservation status. LC.

Remarks. Superficially very similar to S. fluviatilis but well differentiated by molecular characteristics.

Further reading. Yoğurtçuoğlu et al. 2023 (description).