biology

Waterfall climbing cave fish

Waterfall climbing cave fish is a biology topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Waterfall climbing cave fish rather than just read about it. In short: The waterfall climbing cave fish (Cryptotora thamicola), also known as the cave angel fish, is a species of troglobitic hillstream loach endemic to Thailand. It reaches a length of 2.8 centimetres (1.1 in) SL.

Key takeaways

Waterfall climbing cave fish belongs to biology; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Waterfall climbing cave fish to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Waterfall climbing cave fish from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The waterfall climbing cave fish (Cryptotora thamicola), also known as the cave angel fish, is a species of troglobitic hillstream loach endemic to Thailand. It reaches a length of 2.8 centimetres (1.1 in) SL. This fish is known for its fins, which can grapple onto terrain, and its ability to climb. In 2016 it was reported that the waterfall climbing cave fish walks with a tetrapod-like diagonal-couplets lateral sequence gait, displaying a robust pelvic girdle attached to the vertebral column. This fish is the only known member of its genus. The species has been recorded from eight subterranean sites within a large karst system (Pang Mapha karst formation) in Mae Hong Son Province, Thailand. The species has an extent of occurrence of nearly 200 km2, but an area of occupancy of 6 km2; the connectivity of this karst systems is unknown, some caves are definitely connected. The species is found in eight of the caves. It has been recorded from the Susa (from where it was first collected in May 1985) and Tham Mae Lana (Borowsky and Vidthayanon 2001). It may also occur in other submerged caves in the area. However, the species has a potential threat of agricultural pollution which could impact the whole karst system, making it one location. Like other cavefish, it is depigmented and has no visible eyes. This species coexists with another hypogean (underground-living) loach, Schistura oedipus. The species is specialized for fast subterranean flowing water in the deeper zone of the cave (more than 500 m from the entrance). It depends on cave microorganisms and organic matter, and is very sensitive to disturbance, water quality and hydrographic change. The species is protected under Thai law, and is found within a National Park (Pai Basin NP), but this does not necessarily protect the species as there is little restriction on agricultural practices and regulation of tourism is needed to reduce the potential impacts to the species habitat at some sites. Human disturbance from tourism activity (some of the habitat sites are popular for caving tourism and sightseeing) may threaten the species. Agriculture and deforestation are future major threats.

References

External links "Researchers Find Fish That Walks the Way Land Vertebrates Do". NYTimes. March 27, 2016. Liew, Jia H.; Chua, Kenny W. J.; Arsenault, Emily R.; Thorp, James H.; Suvarnaraksha, Apinun; Amirrudin, Ahmad; Yeo, Darren C. J. (2019). "Quantifying terrestrial carbon in freshwater food webs using amino acid isotope analysis: Case study with an endemic cavefish". Methods in Ecology and Evolution. 10 (9): 1594–1605. Bibcode:2019MEcEv..10.1594L. doi:10.1111/2041-210X.13230.

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Waterfall climbing cave fish

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Waterfall climbing cave fish claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In biology, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Waterfall climbing cave fish before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Waterfall climbing cave fish ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Waterfall climbing cave fish

In research: Waterfall climbing cave fish appears in biology research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Waterfall climbing cave fish in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Waterfall climbing cave fish is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Balitoridae, Cave fish, Endemic fauna of Thailand, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Waterfall climbing cave fish outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Waterfall climbing cave fish in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Waterfall climbing cave fish means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Waterfall climbing cave fish out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Waterfall climbing cave fish in simple terms?

Why does Waterfall climbing cave fish matter?

Because it connects several biology ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Waterfall climbing cave fish?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Waterfall climbing cave fish.