Rare Killifish Moema claudiae Rediscovered in Bolivia

Researchers in Bolivia have rediscovered a rare seasonal killifish species, Moema claudiae, long thought to be extinct, in a small temporary pond surrounded by agricultural fields. The find, reported in a study published on November 14, 2024, marks the first sighting of the fish in the wild since 2003 and provides scientists with a critical chance to protect it from ongoing habitat loss.

The species, a member of the rivulid family known for its striking red, yellow, and black coloration, was last documented more than two decades ago in a locality that has since been largely converted to farmland. The new population was located in a blackwater pool just over a foot deep within a seasonally flooded forest remnant near the Ibare River basin, approximately 62 miles northwest of the original site. This area lies at the convergence of two major watersheds in the upper Madeira River basin, the Mamoré and Iténez-Guaporé subbasins, where Amazonian forests meet the savannas of the Llanos de Moxos. Such ecological overlap appears to support an unusually high diversity of killifish, with seven species identified at the site, including six others alongside M. claudiae. This represents the...