Anatolichthys marassantensis (Pfleiderer, Geiger & Herder, 2014)

Freyhof, JÖrg, Yoğurtçuoğlu, Baran, Jouladeh-Roudbar, Arash & Kaya, Cüneyt, 2025, Handbook of Freshwater Fishes of West Asia, De Gruyter : 709-710

Anatolichthys marassantensis

Common name. Kızılırmak killifish.

Diagnosis. Distinguished from other species of Anatolichthys by: ○ adult male with completely black dorsal, or with white or grey base and a narrow white line or row of white spots along dorsal base / ○ male with bright yellow or white anal with narrow black margin and 1–4 narrow, black, concentric bands / ○ male with 8–13 dark-brown bars, third-last bar anterior to caudal base 0.9–1.8 times wider than anterior white interspace / ○ male with ovoid dorsal profile in individuals larger than 26 mm SL / ○ female without spots on caudal / ○ female larger than 28 mm SL with 1–3 lateral rows of large black spots on flank behind dorsal base / ○ body shape ovoid, rarely rhomboid, dorsal profile convex / ○ body completely covered with overlapping scales. Size up to 57 mm SL.

Distribution. Türkiye: Kızılırmak drainage and lower and middle Yeşilırmak drainage; also in adjacent coastal wetlands west of Sinop.

Habitat. Springs, small streams to marshes, and large reservoirs.

Biology. Live up to 5 years; spawns May-September. Feeds mainly on zooplankton (especially cladocerans and copepods), plants (diatoms and algae) and some other invertebrate groups (especially amphipods and gastropods). Similar to A. iconii in Lake Eğirdir, its population fluctuates in a similar pattern to that of Atherina in Hirfanlı Reservoir. Conservation status. LC.

Remarks. This species is usually identified as A. chantrei , a synonym of A. danfordii . Similar fish occurred in upper Jordan drainage and the Damascus basin in Syria until the early 20 th century but have not been found since. These have been identified as A. marassantensis , which may have been introduced in this area, but this needs to be confirmed. Further reading. Krupp 1985d (Syrian records); Geiger et al. 2014 (phylogeny); Pfleiderer et al. 2014 (description); Yoğurtçuoğlu & Ekmekçi 2013 (life-history); Yoğurtçuoğlu & Ekmekçi 2017 (distribution in Yeşilırmak); Yoğurtçuoğlu et al. 2018b (feeding).

Anatolichthys meridionalis ; SÖğüt, Türkiye; female, 38 mm SL.