Higher classification Astyanax | Phylum Chordata Scientific name Astyanax jordani Rank Species | |
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Astyanax jordani top 7 facts
Astyanax jordani is a freshwater fish of the characin family (family Characidae) of order Characiformes, native to Mexico. It is called the cave tetra (which is also used for the A. mexicanus subspecies mentioned below), or by its local Spanish name sardina ciega.
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A blind cave fish, A. jordani is recently evolved from the Mexican tetra (A. mexicanus). While it can be confused with the blind cave form of A. mexicanus, it evolved separately from the surface form, and is considered a different species. (IUCN, however, treats it as a subspecies of A. mexicanus.)
This characin is listed on the IUCN Red List as Vulnerable on the basis of shrinking population and an acutely restricted and diminishing habitat. It is fairly resilient, however, having a population doubling time of 15 months.
It reportedly has been introduced to the Philippines.
Astyanax jordani was formerly classified as Anoptichthys jordani, the sole member of genus Anoptichthys, and was first described by Carl Hubbs and William T. Innes. Anoptichthys hubbsi and Anoptichthys antrobius are junior synonyms.
While this fish is often called "blind cave fish", that term normally refers more specifically to the blind cave form of A. mexicanus.