Abstract:
A taxonomic revision of the Chinese loach fishes of the genera of
Misgurnus and
Paramisgurnus was made in this paper based on the morphology features and sequences of mitochondrial Cyt
b and
COⅠ gene. The results indicated that the species of
Misgurnus and
Paramisgurnus can be distinguished from the size of the scale, the length of the beard, and the degree of healing of the end of the basioccipital. The genetic distance between
Misgurnus and
Paramisgurnus were 15.2%—17.5%, which was very close to those among species for
Misgurnus (10.7%—18.4%). Molecular phylogenetic analysis showed that the genus
Misgurnus was not monophyletic, and
Paramisgurnus was nested within
Misgurnus. Misgurnus bipartitus and
M. anguillicaudatus clustered together, and then clustered with
Paramisgurnus dabryanus,
M. mohoity was located at the basal of the phylogenetic tree. Based on the results of the morphology features and molecular data,
Paramisgurnus should be recognized as a junior synonym of
Misgurnus;
M. bipartitus is a valid species distinct from
M. mohoity.