Abstract
On the African continent, the genus Garra consists of several species often insufficiently separated from each other by diagnostic characters. Herein, a detailed morphological redescription of Garra makiensis from the Awash River drainage is presented, together with additional data on the type specimens of G. makiensis and G. rothschildi. Mitochondrial CO1 sequence data are also provided, including the historic paralectotype of G. makiensis, with a comparison to Garra species from Africa and the Middle East. Based on these sequences, G. makiensis clusters outside the group of African congeners and is a sister lineage to species from the south-east of the Arabian Peninsula. Although morphologically variable, G. makiensis is characterised by having a single unbranched pectoral-fin ray, a short distance between vent and anal-fin origin (7.3–19.7 % of pelvic – anal distance), chest and belly covered with scales, and a prominent axillary scale at base of pelvic fin (18.8–35.5 % of pelvic-fin length).
Highlights
The endorheic Awash River drainage in the northern part of the Main Ethiopian Rift (MER) is subdivided into two freshwater ecoregions, the Ethiopian Highlands and the Northern Eastern Rift (Abell et al 2008)
The region is classified as part of the Abyssinian Highlands ichthyofaunal province (Roberts 1975) (a subprovince of the Nilo-Sudanic province according to Snoeks and Getahun (2013)) or the Ethiopian Rift Valley province (Paugy 2010)
Identification of the Awash samples as G. makiensis is based on 1) the morphological comparison to type specimens of G. makiensis and G. rothschildi (Tables 3, 4), including multivariate statistical analyses (PCA, discriminant function analysis (DFA)) of 17 morphometric and six meristic characters with a comparison to G. aethiopica and G. dembeensis from the Awash River (Fig. 3); and 2) c oxidase subunit 1 (CO1) sequence data with a p-distance of 0.08 % between the paralectotype and the samples of G. makiensis from the Awash River, and 9.53–11.31 % between the paralectotype and other African species. Both principal component analysis (PCA) and DFA cluster type specimens of G. makiensis together with the Awash population identified as G. makiensis, while they are distinct from G. aethiopica and G. dembeensis (Fig. 3)
Summary
The endorheic Awash River drainage in the northern part of the Main Ethiopian Rift (MER) is subdivided into two freshwater ecoregions, the Ethiopian Highlands and the Northern Eastern Rift (Abell et al 2008). Garra makiensis is endemic to Ethiopia where it is found in endorheic drainages (Awash (including the Gotta River sub-drainage) and Meki) of the Northern and Central MER (Fig. 1) (Golubtsov et al 2002).
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