The Dianchi bullhead, ''Pseudobagrus medianalis'', is a species of

catfish Catfish (or catfishes; order Siluriformes or Nematognathi) are a diverse group of ray-finned fish. Named for their prominent barbels, which resemble a cat's whiskers, catfish range in size and behavior from the three largest species alive, ...

in the family

Bagridae The Bagridae are a family of catfish that are native to Africa ('' Bagrus'') and Asia (all other genera) from Japan to Borneo. It includes about 245 species. These fish are commonly known as naked catfishes or bagrid catfishes. Many large bagrid ...

. It is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

to the

Lake Dianchi Dianchi Lake (), also known as Lake Dian and Kunming Lake (), is a large lake located on the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau close to Kunming, Yunnan, China. Its nickname is the "Sparkling Pearl Embedded in a Highland" () and it was the model for the Ku ...

basin in

Yunnan Yunnan , () is a landlocked Provinces of China, province in Southwest China, the southwest of the People's Republic of China. The province spans approximately and has a population of 48.3 million (as of 2018). The capital of the province is ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

. It can grow to TL. It is a cryptic, benthic fish that hides during the daytime and forages on small fishes and aquatic invertebrates at night.

Habitat and conservation

This species was once a common fish in Lake Dianchi, but is now mainly restricted to spring systems draining to the lake. This habitat is under threat from pollution and from conversion into fish ponds. An ex-situ conservation effort has been planned.

References

medianalis Endemic fauna of Yunnan Freshwater fish of China Taxonomy articles created by Polbot Fish described in 1904 Taxobox binomials not recognized by IUCN {{bagridae-stub