The bandula barb (''Pethia bandula'') is a species of cyprinid endemic to

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

where it is only known from near Galapitamada in the

Warakapola Divisional Secretariat Warakapola Divisional Secretariat is a Divisional Secretariat of Kegalle District Kegalle is a district in Sabaragamuwa Province, Sri Lanka. It is one of 25 districts of Sri Lanka, the second level administrative division of the country. ...

. As this critically endangered species only was known from a single unprotected site where the population consists of an estimated 1,000 individuals, a second "

insurance population Translocation in wildlife conservation is the capture, transport and release or introduction of species, habitats or other ecological material (such as soil) from one location to another. It contrasts with reintroduction, a term which is gener ...

" was established in 2014 by a team of

IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN; officially International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natu ...

scientists in cooperation with Sri Lanka's Forest Department, the

Department of Wildlife Conservation The Department of Wildlife Conservation ( Sinhala: වනජීවී සංරක්‍ෂණ දෙපාර්තමේන්තුව ''Vanajivi Sanrakshana Departhamenthuwa'') is a non-ministerial government department in Sri Lanka. It is th ...

and local communities. On 24 December 2018,

National Geographic ''National Geographic'' (formerly the ''National Geographic Magazine'', sometimes branded as NAT GEO) is a popular American monthly magazine published by National Geographic Partners. Known for its photojournalism, it is one of the most widely ...

reported that the bandula barb was the 9,000th animal photographed for ''

The Photo Ark ''The Photo Ark'' is a ''National Geographic'' project, led by photographer Joel Sartore, with the goal of photographing all species living in zoos and wildlife sanctuaries around the globe in order to inspire action to save wildlife. The project ...

'' by

Joel Sartore Joel Sartore is an American photographer focusing on conservation photography, speaker, author, teacher, and a long-time contributor to ''National Geographic'' magazine. He is the head of The National Geographic ''Photo Ark'' project, a 25-year ...

References

Pethia Barbs (fish) Fish described in 1991 Taxonomy articles created by Polbot {{Barbinae-stub