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ABSTRACT

Fishes that live or occur in deep underground places are known as "subterranean." The first and only known specimen of a cavefish is found in the Ming Dynasty stone epigraph from Alugu Cave in China`s Yunnan Province. To thrive in such unique, underground ecosystems mechanical, auditory, chemical, magnetic, and electrical adaptations play a major role in subterranean fishes. Because of their low diversity and dependency on nutrients from surface water, subterranean environments are uniquely problematic for conservation. The majority of these fishes have insufficient data and are close to being declared endangered. Therefore, the fauna should be discovered by exploring the hidden diversity and then preserved.

Keywords: Subterranean fishes, Cavefishes, Adaptations and Threats

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7. Subterranean Fish (38 -41)_compressed.pdf