Description

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Dorsal spines (total): 0; Dorsal soft rays (total): 9 - 11; Anal spines: 0; Anal soft rays: 8 - 11; Vertebrae: 29 - 30. Pink-white. No eyes (vestigial eye tissues under skin). Extremely small pelvic fins (rarely absent). Large, broad head. Caudal fin with 4-6 rows of papillae; 11-13 branched caudal rays.

Common Names

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Stor hulefisk , Danish , Denmark

Northern Cavefish , English , UK

Northern cavefish , English , USA

Koopa-pimesilm , Estonian , Estonia

Nördlicher Höhlenfisch , German , Germany

洞鱸 (盲鮰) , Mandarin Chinese , China

洞鲈 (盲鮰) , Mandarin Chinese , China

Severna jamska riba , Slovene , Slovenia

Taxonomic Hierarchy

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Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Class: Teleostei

Order: Percopsiformes

Family: Amblyopsidae

Genus: Amblyopsis

Species: Amblyopsis spelaea DeKay, 1842

Climate Zone

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Temperate

Location

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North America: Indiana and Kentucky, U.S.A.

Biology

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Blind and depigmented. Despite the lack of eyes it does respond to light and moves away from it (scotophilia). Inhabits subterranean water or caves which have consolidated mud-rock substrates in shoals and silt-sand substrates in pools but is more often found in caves with uniform silt-sand substrates (Ref. 34868). Has low reproduction rate and broods eggs in gill cavity for up to 4-5 months (Ref. 557; 34868; 27795). Can live for 2 years without food because of low metabolic rate (Ref. 5326). Top predator.

Habitat

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demersal