Delminichthys ghetaldii ( Steindachner, 1882 )

Lukač, Milica, Ludoški, Jasmina, Dekić, Radoslav & Milankov, Vesna, 2025, Evolutionary history of the Balkan endemic genus Delminichthys (Teleostei, Leuciscidae) with an emphasis on the population structure of Southern Dalmatian minnow, Contributions to Zoology 94 (1), pp. 1-42 : 6-7

Delminichthys ghetaldii ( Steindachner, 1882)

Contributions to Zoology 94 (2025) 1–42

Syn.: Paraphoxinus ghetaldii ( Steindachner, 1882) , Phoxinellus ghetaldii ( Steindachner, 1882) , Phoxinellus pstrossi ( Steindachner, 1882)

The genus Phoxinellus Heckel (1843) (type species: Phoxinellus alepidotus Heckel, 1843 syn. Paraphoxinus Bleeker, 1863 ) included different small Mediterranean leuciscins ( Trewavas, 1971; Karaman, 1972; Almaça, 1977; Bânârescu, 1977; Banister, 1980; Economidis & Bânârescu, 1991; Bogutskaya, 1992; Kottelat, 1997). Unlike P. alepidotus and P. ghetaldii syn. P. pstrossi , which were discovered earlier, two new species of Phoxinellus ( P.krbavensis and P. jadovensis ) were discovered later ( Zupančič & Bogutskaya, 2000, 2002; Bogutskaya & Zupančič, 2003). According to Bogutskaya & Zupančič (2003), based on morphological traits Phoxinellus species are divided into two groups, each of which includes several species. However, within Phoxinellus , based on phylogenetic data, Delminichthys is recognized as a separate genus and thus the species D. adspersus , D. ghetaldii , D. jadovensis and D. krbavensis ( Freyhof et al., 2006) .

Delminichthys (Phoxinellus) ghetaldii was first found in the caves of Popovo Polje (type locality): Steindachner, 1882, Kosić, 1903; Trgovčević, 1905, 1932; Ćurčić, 1913, 1915a, b; Taler, 1952, 1953; Ristić, 1977; Vuković,1982.According to Ćurčić(1915a,b) and materials in Natural History Museum Wien (NMW) and Primož Zupančič (PZ) collections, P.ghetaldii is distributed north of Popovo Polje, in Ljubomirsko Polje and Fatničko Polje (eastern Herzegovina, all coastal drainage). It was recorded in Dabarsko Polje (Sušica and Ljelješnica Caves) for the first time by Ćurčić (1915a) and confirmed by PZ’ s findings of juveniles

Contributions to Zoology 94 (2025) 1–42 of this species in the channel flowing from Ljelješnica Cave. Many authors reported Phoxinellus (or Paraphoxinus ) pstrossii from the Trebišnjica River near Trebinje, Herzegovina and Dalmatia region, or just the Adriatic basin in Yugoslavia: Kišpatić (1893), Taler (1952, 1953), Sket (1967), Vuković & Ivanović (1971), Ristić (1977), Vuković (1977, 1982), Pocrnjić et al. (1979), Povž et al. (1990), Mikavica (1998), Vuković & Miladinović (1969), Berberović et al. (1969) and Aganović & Kapetanović (1971), while Vuković (1977) reported P. pstrossii from Ljubomirsko Polje, Sofradžija & Berberović (1972) from Dabarsko Polje and Ljubomirsko Polje, and Pavlović & Berberović (1978) from Dabarsko Polje. Ćurčić (1915a) found P. ghetaldii in Blaća, a small karstic field north-east of Neum ( Bosnia and Herzegovina). Delminichthys (Phoxinellus) ghetaldii was found by B. Jalžić and N. Tvrtković for the first time in a cave part of the source of Rijeka Dubrovačka (Ombla) near Dubrovnik and in an isolated spring pool in Stravča near Cavtat (both localities are in Dalmatia) (Croatian Natural History Museum; Zupančič & Bogutskaya, 2002). Based on the available data, individuals of D. ghetaldii were found both before and after the construction of dams and the Bileća Reservoir. In Ljubomirsko Polje, Fatničko Polje, Dabarsko Polje and Konavosko Polje they were also recently found ( Zupančič & Bogutskaya, 2002; Dekić et al., 2014, 2016; Jelić & Jelić, 2015; Schӧnhuth et al., 2018; Reier et al., 2022; Lukač et al., 2023). In the Bileća Reservoir and downstream of the Grnčarevo Dam on the Trebišnjica River, individuals have not been detected since 2002 ( Zupančič & Bogutskaya, 2002).