Lamprehuela  (Cobitis paludica)

Classified as Vulnerable (VU) on the IUCN Red List 2007 (1), and listed on Appendix III of the Bern Convention (3).

This small bottom-dwelling fish, a member of the Cobitidae, or loach family (4), has an elongated, pale body patterned with dark spots (2). The head, also dotted with small spots, bears three pairs of barbels (fleshy projections) around the mouth (2), and a forked, erectile spine sits below each eye (2) (4). Male lamprehuela are smaller than females (2).

The lamprehuela occurs in rivers of the central and southern Iberian Peninsula (1), but has also been introduced, presumably by fish anglers, to rivers in northern Spain (1) (5).

A bottom-dwelling, freshwater fish, the lamprehuela inhabits the middle and lower parts of rivers, where there is a gentle current, sandy or gravel bottom, and submerged aquatic vegetation (1) (5) (6).

The lamprehuela is a short-lived fish in which, interestingly, females live for a year longer than males, with females living for up to five years, but males living only up to four years (2) (6). Lamprehuela mature shortly after reaching a year old (7), with spawning commencing in late March and ending in July (7). During this time, sexually mature females release hundreds of eggs, (up to 1,400 eggs), into the water (2), in a minimum of two batches (7).

Lamprehuela feed on invertebrates, particularly chironomid (non-biting midge) larvae and Ostracoda (small shrimps) (6), as well as detritus and algae (2) (8).

This small loach faces a number of threats which have led to the reduction of formerly abundant populations (1), and local extinctions in some river tributaries (2). The extraction of gravel and diversion of water for agriculture, along with pollution and dam construction, has destroyed suitable habitat for the lamprehuela (2). The introduction of exotic fish species has also had a negative effect on populations, and the commercial trade in lamprehuela as live bait could potentially pose an additional threat to this Vulnerable species (1) (2) (5).

In Spain, there is legislation which ensures the maintenance of minimum river flow, which should lessen the occurrence of destructive river alterations, such as dams. Spanish law also bans the use of live bait (2) (5), however, the commercial trade in live bait remains a potential threat in Portugal (2). To ensure the long-term survival of this threatened fish it has been recommended that the release of exotic fishes should be carefully controlled, and water flow and quality should be strictly monitored (2).

View information on this species at the UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre.