Life habits and morphological characteristics of small-mouthed catfish

Platypharodon extremus is also known as Platypharodon extremus. It belongs to the order Cypriniformes, family Cyprinidae, subfamily Schizothorax, and genus Cyprinidae. Commonly known as: smallmouth fish, catfish, grass fish. English name: Wide tooth schizothoracin.

Endangerment level: Vulnerable.

The body is long, flat on the sides, bulging on the back, and flat on the abdomen. Head tapered. The muzzle is blunt and round. The mouth is in the lower position, with transverse cleft; the lower jaw has a sharp and developed horny front edge. The upper lip is broad and thick, and the lower lip is thin and narrow. The posterior labial groove ends at the corner of the mouth. No need. The body is naked and scaleless, with only buttock scales; the scales on the shoulder girdle disappear or leave only traces; the lateral line scales are not obvious. The dorsal fin has strong spines and deep serrations, and the starting points of the dorsal and pelvic fins are opposite; the anal fin is positioned posteriorly; the caudal peduncle is short. The dorsal side of the body is yellowish brown or greenish brown, and the abdomen is light yellowish or grayish white. The ventral and anal fins are light yellow, and the dorsal and caudal fins are blue-grey.

Adapted to living in plateau rivers above 3,000 meters above sea level. The habitat is slow-flowing or still water bodies with gravel bottoms and clear water. They often like to live in caves under meadows. Its feeding habit is simple, and it feeds by scraping algae attached to the bottom of the water with its mandibles. The reproductive period begins in May-June after the freeze, and the spawning grounds are in slow currents with a water depth of less than 1 meter. Common individual weight is 1.5-2.0 kg.

The flat-throated toothfish is endemic to my country. The distribution area is narrow and is only distributed in the wide valley rivers of the upper reaches of the Yellow River plateau.

Platyopharyngeus is a species that lives in alpine zones, with a small population and a narrow distribution area. Factors such as short growth period, slow growth rate, and late age of sexual maturity limit the population development of this species. . Since the 1950s, the population in the production areas has increased dramatically, and high-intensity fishing has led to a rapid decline in resources. At present, the distribution area has gradually shrunk to the depths of sparsely populated plateau meadows.

animal tags：