Hypogean Freshwater Eel

A new species of blind swamp eel of the genus Rakthamichthys was discovered in a well in Mumbai by naturalist Tejas Thackeray, son of Uddhav Thackeray, the chief minister of Maharashtra.

Highlights

• The new species that was discovered is a hypogean freshwater eel.
• Praveenraj Jaisimhan, Tejas Thackeray, Annam Pavan Kumar and Anil Mohapatra have been attributed to this neely discovered eel.
• The species has been named Rakthamichthys Mumba
• The study has been published in the Aqua International Journal of Ichthyology.

About Rakthamichthys Mumba

It is the first completely blind subterranean freshwater fish species described in Maharashtra and the northern Western Ghats. Unlike other species of its genus, the Mumba does not have fins, scales and eyes. It has the same number of jaw in its forwarding extent, a crescent-shaped head shape and a different gill opening.

Difference from its counterparts

The species differs from its counterparts in the Western Ghats of India in that it has jaws that protrude forward when viewed from the side, without eyes and with more vertebrae. The only known habitat for the species is the Mumbai Well.