Cobitidae
| Cobitidae | |
|---|---|
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| Cobitis biwae | |
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| Cobitis paludica | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Cypriniformes |
| Family: |
Cobitidae Swainson, 1838 |
| Genera | |
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Cobitidae, also known as the True loaches, is a family of Old World freshwater fish. They occur throughout Eurasia and in Morocco, and inhabit riverine ecosystems. Today, most "loaches" are placed in other families (see below). The family includes about 260 described species. New species are being described regularly.
The body forms of the Cobitidae tend to be vermiform – worm-shaped, long and thin. Most true loaches do not have true scales, and like many other Cypriniformes or catfishes, they have barbels at their mouths (usually three to six pairs). Some other traits typically found in this family are a small bottom-facing mouth suited to their scavenging benthic lifestyle, an erectile spine below the eye, and a single row of pharyngeal (throat) teeth.
True loaches are mostly scavengers and are omnivorous, usually not very picky about their food. They may eat aquatic crustaceans, insects, and other small invertebrates, as well as scraps of organic detritus. Many live in eutrophic waters of generally poor quality and feed on tubifex worms and similar benthos associated with such habitat. Some of these loaches have adapted to low oxygen levels in warm, muddy rivers or dirty ponds by being able to gulp up atmospheric oxygen. Some species, particularly from the genera Cobitis and especially Misgurnus, are sensitive to changing air pressure. They change their behavior accordingly, and as these changes in activity are usually followed by a change in weather, they are commonly known as "weather fishes" or "weather loaches".
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Wikipedia