Chondrostoma scodrense

Chondrostoma scodrense is a presumably extinct species of the genus Chondrostoma within the family Cyprinidae. The occurrence was limited to Montenegro and Albania.

Features

Chondrostoma scodrense reached a standard length of 135 mm. The mouth was slightly curved with a thin but well-developed horny layer on the lower lip. On the lateral line there were 51 to 59 scales. The anal and Dorsalflossen were curved on the outside line a bit. The number of back -fin rays was eight or nine, the number of Analflossenstrahlen nine to ten and the number of pelvic fin rays eight. The pectoral fins have 15 to 18 rays. There were 14 to 17 gill rakers.

Occurrence

Chondrostoma scodrense was endemic in the Skadar Lake on the border between Montenegro and Albania.

Habitat and behavior

About the life and habitat, there are no reliable field data. Comparisons with its nearest relatives, the nose ( Chondrostoma nasus ), but lead to the assumption that he spring in Rijeka crnojevica, a tributary of Lake Skadar, wandered and spawned there.

Status

Chondrostoma scodrense 2006 was declared extinct by the IUCN, because this species is known only from nine museum specimens, the Franz Steindachner had collected from August to September 1881. Despite intensive searches in the 1980s, in the 1990s and in 2003, the taxon was not found again. Possible causes for the disappearance of the species were over-fishing, pollution and habitat loss. Steindachner's collection is kept at the Natural History Museum in Vienna.