Table 1.
Meristics and morphometrics of S. sanxiaensisand its diagnosis relative to all other congeners
| Item | Value | Diagnosis |
|---|---|---|
| Dorsal fin | iii,8 | (1) Distinguished from most congeners (55) by presence of albinism (loss of pigmentation in the skin) vs. non-albinism, except for 19 species: S. altishoulderus,S. anatirostris, S. anophthalmus, S. anshuiensis,S. aquihornes, S. bicornutus, S. brevis, S. convexiforeheadus, S. flexuosdorsalis, S. furcodorsalis, S. hugeibarbus, S. hyalinus, S. jiuxuensis, S. lingyunensis, S. macrophthalmus, S. mashanensis, S. microphthalmus,S. tianlinensis, and S. xunlensis. |
| Anal fin | iii,5 | |
| Pectoral fin | I,14 | |
| Pelvic fin | I,7 | |
| Total vertebrae | 34 | |
| Predorsal vertebrae | 5 | |
| Caudal vertebrae | 18 | |
| Gill rakers | 7 | |
| Lateral line scales | 41 | |
| Scale row above lateral line | 16 | |
| Scale row below lateral line | 10 | |
| Circumpeduncular scale | 16 | |
| Standard length (mm) | 164.1 | |
| In % of standard length | (2) Distinguished from S. lingyunensis and S. macrophthalmus by absence of eyes vs. normal eyes. | |
| Body depth | 28.5 | |
| Predorsal length | 58.0 | |
| Dorsal fin base length | 15.7 | |
| Dorsal fin length | 21.6 | |
| Preanal length | 73.3 | (3) Distinguished from S. altishoulderus, S. bicornutus, S. brevis, S. hugeibarbus, S. jiuxuensis, S. mashanensis, andS. microphthalmus by absence of eyes vs. dotted eyes (reduced but visible). |
| Anal fin base length | 8.7 | |
| Anal fin length | 17.1 | |
| Prepectoral length | 34.2 | |
| Pectoral fin base length | 4.4 | |
| Pectoral fin length | 24.1 | |
| Prepelvic length | 54.8 | |
| Pelvic fin base length | 4.4 | (4) Distinguished from S. anatirostris, S. anshuiensis, S. aquihornes, S. convexiforeheadus, S. flexuosdorsalis, S. furcodorsalis, S. hyalinus, and S. tianlinensis by absence of forehead horn vs. forehead horn present (different types). |
| Pelvic fin length | 17.7 | |
| Caudal peduncle length | 18.6 | |
| Caudal peduncle depth | 11.6 | |
| Head length | 33.6 | |
| Head depth | 20.1 | |
| Head width | 17.4 | |
| Snout length | 16.4 | (5) Distinguished from S. anophthalmusand S. xunlensis by only slight uplift of back along and after head (vs. rapid) and very short barbels (vs. long). In addition, Sinocyclocheilus sanxiaensis can be further distinguished from S. anophthalmus by fewer vertebrae (34 vs. 38–39) and fewer lateral line scales (41 vs. 48–59); and from S. xunlensis by normal and subterminal mouth (vs. duckbilled mouth). |
| Eye diameter | 7.3 | |
| Interorbital width | 10.7 | |
| Prenostril length | 7.1 | |
| Width between posterior nostrils | 7.0 | |
| Upper jaw length | 8.9 | |
| Lower jaw length | 8.3 | |
| Mouth width | 9.7 | |
| Maxilla barbel length | 4.2 | |
| Rictal barbel length | 6.5 |