Tag Archives: Cyprinodontidae

Cyprinodon latifasciatus Garman

Parras Pupfish (Cyprinodon latifasciatus)

The Parras Pupfish was described in 1881, it was restricted to a spring or rather a series of springs in the valley that connects with Laguna de Mayrán near the city of San Pedro in Coahuila, Mexico.

Though some of these springs still exist, they do not harbour their former inhabitants any longer, but instead are filled with intentionally introduced Mosquitofish (Gambusia affinis (Baird & Girard)), Guppys (Poecilia reticulata Peters), and Swordtails (Xiphophorus helleri Heckel).

The Parras Pupfish was last seen in the 1930s and is now extinct.

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References:

[1] M. L. Lozano-Vilano; M. De La Maza-Beningnos: Diversity and status of Mexican killifishes. Journal of Fish Biology 90(1): 1-36. 2016

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edited: 27.05.2019

Cyprinodon nevadensis ssp. calidae Miller

Tecopa Pupfish (Cyprinodon nevadensis ssp. calidae)

The Tecopa Pupfish was described in 1948, it was restricted to some outlets of the North- and South Tecopa Hot Springs in Inyo County, California, USA.

The two hot springs that this fish inhabited were very popular in the 1950s and 60s and were used for recreationally purposes; bathhouses were built, the spring pools were enlarged and their outflows were diverted which resulted in swifter currents which again caused the water temperatures downstream to rise above the level to which this pupfish was adapted.

All these modifications also allowed a subspecies closely related to this form, the Amargosa River Pupfish (Cyprinodon nevadensis ssp. armagosae Miller), to invade the Tecopa Pupfish’s habitat and to hybridize with it. 

The last presumed Tecopa Pupfishs were recorded in 1966, but these, having ‘too small’ scales, may already have been hybrids.

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edited: 27.05.2019

Cyprinodon ceciliae Lozana-Vilano & Contreras-Balderas

Presa Pupfish (Cyprinodon ceciliae)

The Presa Pupfish was described in 1993, when it was already extinct.

The species was restricted to small creeks and ditches around La Presa Spring near the city of Aramberri in Nuevo León in Mexico; all of these are now completely dry due to excessive pumping of groundwater for agricultural purposes.

The Presa Pupfish, which reached an rather impressive size for a pupfish of up to 7 cm, was last seen in 1988 and is now extinct.

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References:

[1] M. L. Lozano-Vilano; M. De La Maza-Beningnos: Diversity and status of Mexican killifishes. Journal of Fish Biology 90(1): 1-36. 2016

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edited: 27.05.2019

Cyprinodon arcuatus Minckley & Miller

Santa Cruz Pupfish (Cyprinodon arcuatus)

The Santa Cruz Pupfish, also known as Monkey Spring Pupfish, was endemic to the Santa Cruz River system in Santa Cruz County in Arizona, USA, where it apparently was restricted to the margins of an artifical pond fed by an irrigation canal from Monkey Spring.

The species reached a size of about 3,8 cm.

The Santa Cruz Pupfish disappeared around 1970, due to the introduction of Largemouth Basses (Micropterus salmoides (Lacépède)) for ‘sport’ fishing. The species was kept in captivity for some times but breeding efforts were unsuccessful so that the Santa Cruz Pupfish is now extinct.

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edited: 27.05.2019

Cyprinodon inmemoriam Lozano-Vilano & Contreras-Balderas

La Trinidad Pupfish (Cyprinodon inmemoriam)

The La Trinidad Pupfish was described in 1993, when it was already extinct.

The species was discovered in March 1984 in a spring named Ojo de Agua La Trinidad in the city of Aramberri in Nuevo León, it was then found extinct, just 18 months later in October 1985.

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References:

[1] M. L. Lozano-Vilano; M. De La Maza-Beningnos: Diversity and status of Mexican killifishes. Journal of Fish Biology 90(1): 1-36. 2016

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edited: 27.05.2019