Cobitis erkakanae, Freyhof, Baycelebi & Geiger, 2018

Freyhof, JÖrg, Yoğurtçuoğlu, Baran, Jouladeh-Roudbar, Arash & Kaya, Cüneyt, 2025, Handbook of Freshwater Fishes of West Asia, De Gruyter : 447-448

Cobitis erkakanae

Common name. Gölbaşı spined loach.

Diagnosis. Distinguished from other species of Cobitis in Mediterranean basin east of Eşen and endorheic basins in Central Anatolia by: ○ flank pattern well organised in four Gambetta zones / ○ a series of large, horizontally elongate blotches in Z4, adjacent blotches often fused / ○ blotches in Z4 not vertically or horizontally dissociated / ○ external part of suborbital spine bifurcate / ○ black spot present at upper caudal base / ○ two laminae circularis in male / ○ mid-dorsal

pigmentation consisting in a series of 9–12, elongate blotches, often very closely set or slightly fused. Size up to 65 mm SL.

Distribution. Türkiye: Lakes Gölbaşı ( Adıyaman) basin in Ceyhan drainage.

Habitat. Streams and lakes, usually on sand or fine gravel.

Biology. No data.

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

Remarks. Together with C. aliyeae and C. evreni , C. erkakanae is the third Cobitis species found in Ceyhan

drainage. All three species occur in allopatry within drainage, but we are unaware of any biogeographical background explaining why the Gölbaşı lakes have their own fish fauna isolated from the Ceyhan. Not only is C. erkakanae endemic to the Gölbaşı lakes, but molecular data indicates that the populations of Paraphanius ( P. boulengeri ) and Pseudophoxinus zekayi are isolated from those in Ceyhan. While the water from the Gölbaşı lakes flows to the Ceyhan today, we postulate that this was an endorheic basin connected only recently to the Ceyhan.

Further reading. Freyhof et al. 2018c (description).

Cobitis evreni ; Ceyhan drainage, Türkiye; upper: 78 mm SL; lower: 75 mm SL.