Fire-eyed river creature — with odd way of protecting its eggs — is a new species 
By Aspen Pflughoeft BU Source: miamiherald 1/17/2024
Aspen Pflughoeft
Credit: Britz, Hui and Rüber (2024), shared by Ralf Britz

In a river of southern Myanmar, a “fire”-eyed creature swam through the water. Maybe it was the shiny scales or the nearly fluorescent coloring, because something about the animal caught the attention of nearby scientists. It turned out to be a new species. Researchers visited the Kra Buri River on a wildlife survey in 2022, according to a study published Jan. 15 in the journal Raffles Bulletin of Zoology.

 

While there, researchers found several brightly colored fish, the study said. The fish matched some available in the aquarium trade but did not appear in scientific records. Taking a closer look at the animals, researchers realized they’d discovered a new species: Channa pyrophthalmus, or the fire-eyed snakehead fish.

 
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