![]() ![]() In all, scientists have discovered 10 species of subterranean fish in the aquifers there that provide water for millions of people.Īn estimated six million wells draw from this underground reserve, Britz says. The area where the fish live, the Western Ghats of southern India, is a biodiversity hot spot. Britz says the family’s common name is fitting because “everyone who sees a photo of the fish is somehow reminded of a dragon.” These strange, long-bodied fish, which dwell in aquifers of porous rock, are rarely seen, only coming to the surface after flooding from heavy rains. “We think this is the most exciting discovery in the fish world of the last decade,” says Britz, lead author of a study published recently in Scientific Reports. This family includes only two species, one of which is named the Gollum snakehead, after the subterranean Lord of the Rings character. Taxonomic families are often large and diverse For example, the human family, Hominidae, includes chimpanzees, orangutans, and gorillas. These primitive fish are a type of “living fossil” and may have diverged from their nearest relatives more than a hundred million years ago.ĭiscovering a new family of fish-the taxonomic category above genus and species-is very uncommon, says study leader Ralf Britz, an ichthyologist at Senckenberg Natural History Collections, part of the Museum of Zoology in Dresden, Germany. Researchers have discovered a new family of eel-like fish, named dragon snakeheads, which live in underground waters in southern India. ![]()
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