Yellow river creature with ‘flattened’ head found in China. It’s a new species
In a stream of southern China, a “cryptic” yellow creature with a “flattened” head rested on the riverbed. Its yellow-ringed eyes scanned the surrounding water, but it wasn’t the only one looking.
Visiting scientists found the “easy”-to-catch aquatic animal — and discovered a new species.
A team of researchers visited several rivers in eastern Guangxi Province between 2019 and 2024 as part of a project to survey aquatic life, according to a study published Sept. 9 in the peer-reviewed journal Zoosystematics and Evolution.
During the fieldwork, researchers found some pale yellow fish, the study said. At first, they thought the fish looked like a known species, but when they took a closer look, they noticed some unique features and realized they’d discovered a new species: Oreonectes guidongensis, or the Guidong hilly loach.
Guidong hilly loaches have “elongated and cylindrical” bodies reaching about 3 inches in length, the study said. Their heads are “flattened,” their mouths are “curved” and their lips are “smooth.” They have three pairs of “long” whisker-like barbels and “fine scales” along most of their body.
A photo shows the “light yellowish brown” coloring of the new species and its “many obvious speckles.” Its eyes have a yellow ring.
Guidong hilly loaches were found in “large populations,” the study said. Much about their lifestyle and behavior remains unknown.
Researchers said they named the new species after the eastern Guangxi area, “also known as Gui,” where it was first discovered and, so far, the only region where it has been found. Guangxi is a province of southern China bordering Vietnam.
The new species was identified by its internal anatomy, body proportions, fin shape and other subtle physical features, the study said. DNA analysis found the new species had at least 5% genetic divergence from related species.
The research team included Mei Liao, Jing Yu, Tao Luo, Chang-Ting Lan, Jia-Jun Zhou, Ning Xiao and Jiang Zhou.
This story was originally published September 17, 2025 at 9:32 AM with the headline "Yellow river creature with ‘flattened’ head found in China. It’s a new species."
