Key Laboratory of the Zoological Systematics and Evolution, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 100101 Beijing, China.
J Fish Biol. 2011 Dec;79(6):1545-62. doi: 10.1111/j.1095-8649.2011.03066.x. Epub 2011 Aug 16.
Caves and karsts are among the most threatened ecosystems in the world. They are very fragile, balanced habitats with high levels of endemic species that are extremely sensitive to environmental changes. In recent decades, however, threats from rapid economic growth have increased the need for conservation efforts for cave-dwelling communities. In addition, difficulties in accessing and sampling these habitats mean that they remain as one of the least known ecosystems in the world with modern studies of cave fishes only starting in China during the 1980s. Here, the current status of cave fishes in China is reviewed. China is host to the highest number of cave fish species in the world, with 48 troglobite species out of a total of 101 cave fish species. All of these cave fish species (one order and three families) and half of the genera are endemic to China with Sinocyclocheilus being the most speciose cave fish genus. Species from this genus possess horns and humpbacks resulting from processes of parallel evolution, but the function of these features remains unknown. With the exception of Onychostoma macrolepis distributed in north China, all other species are found in the karst environment of the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau. Sympatric distribution is common, and sometimes several different cave fish species can be found in the same cave or subterranean river. For this reason, Chinese cave fishes represent an important evolutionary framework.
洞穴和喀斯特地貌是世界上受威胁最严重的生态系统之一。它们是非常脆弱的、平衡的栖息地，拥有高度特有的物种，对环境变化极其敏感。然而，近几十年来，经济快速增长带来的威胁增加了保护洞穴生物群落的必要性。此外，由于难以进入和采样这些栖息地，它们仍然是世界上了解最少的生态系统之一，现代洞穴鱼类研究直到 20 世纪 80 年代才在中国开始。本文回顾了中国洞穴鱼类的现状。中国是世界上洞穴鱼类物种数量最多的国家，共有 101 种洞穴鱼类，其中 48 种是真正的洞穴鱼类。所有这些洞穴鱼类物种（一个目和三个科）和一半的属都是中国特有的，其中 Sinocyclocheilus 是洞穴鱼类中最多样化的属。这个属的物种具有角和驼背，这是平行进化的结果，但这些特征的功能仍不清楚。除了分布在中国北方的 Onychostoma macrolepis 外，所有其他物种都分布在中国云贵高原的喀斯特环境中。同域分布很常见，有时在同一个洞穴或地下河中可以发现几种不同的洞穴鱼类。因此，中国洞穴鱼类代表了一个重要的进化框架。
