Shark Research

Giant Whale Shark

Research team of bangladesh is going to concentrate on Shark research with chief scientist Md. Muzammel Hossain. He reported to Sharklab Banladesh and posted on his facebook well that The whale shark inhabits all tropical and warm-temperate seas. The fish is primarily pelagic, living in the open sea but not in the greater depths of the ocean. The dead Whale Shark discarded at the mouth of town’s main canal. Fishermen castoff a giant Whale Shark in the coastal Patharghata town on 16 November 2016 after it was throttled to death in fishing net off-shore Barguna. The shark was caught about 18 kilometers off-shore and dragged back to the fish landing center. It is weight about 300kg. Whale sharks are the largest fish on the planet. These gentle giants are filter-feeders and are harmless to humans. The enormous whale shark, which can reach lengths of 40 feet or more, feeds on the tiniest of ocean organisms, plankton. The globally endangered migratory fish oftentimes get caught in the fishing net in marine areas of Bangladesh in the Bay of Bengal. IUCN Status is Vulnerable and this shark population day by day is decreasing. This shark species is highly limited by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) to which Bangladesh is a party. Threats to the whale shark include habitat loss which results in loss of prey species, coastal development resulting in marine pollution, collision with boats, and disturbance or harassment by fishing net, boats and divers engaged in irresponsible tourism activities.

Discovered New Species (Danio annulosus)

Dr. Sven Oscar Kullander and Dr. Michael Noren had came from Swedish Museum of Natural History, Stockholm University to research on freshwater fishes of Bangladesh during December 2014. Sven Oscar Kullander is a big scientist in ichthyology. During the study period Md. Muzammel Hossain was assist in the field trip and discovered Danio annulosus, new species, is discribed from a small pool below the Shuvolong Falls in the Kaptai Lake system in Bangladesh.

The species is named and described jointly by Sven O Kullander, M.D Mizanur Rahman, Michael Noren and Abdur Rob Mollah in 2015 in association with the Department of Zoology, Swedish Museum of Natural History, Sweden and the Department of Zoology, University of Dhaka, Bangladesh. The study and paper on Danio annulosus was published in ZooTaxa both online and in print in the same year 2015.It was collected from a small pool at the bottom of the Shuvolong Falls in the Kaptai Lake system in Rangamati district in the Chittagong division, Bangladesh. Danio annulosus is so for known only from a small pool below the shuvolong waterfalls during the summer when the water was stand still in the pool. There is a good chance of finding them in Kaptai lake system formed by the damming of Karnafuli River, as a small stream drains the pool to kapati lake.

(from left Dr. Michael Noren, middle Md. Muzammel Hossain and right Dr. Sven Oscar Kullander with new species)

Sven Oscar Kullander (born in Sollefteå, 30 November 1952) is a Swedish biologist specialised in ichthyology. He primarily researches cichlids – notably the genus Apistogramma and the Cichlasoma-complex – and other tropical fresh water fishes. He also has been working with endangered fish species in Sweden. He studied at the universities of Umeå and Stockholm, and took his Ph.D. in Stockholm in 1984. He is currently senior curator at the Swedish Museum of Natural History in Stockholm, with the responsibility for the ichthyologic and herpetologic collections. Kullander also coordinates the museum's contributions to FishBase.

Kullander has produced more than 100 scientific and popular publications on fishes, and described many groups and new species of cichlids.

The Swedish aquarists' magazine Tidskriften Akvariet gave him "Akvariets Oscar" ("the Aquarium Academy Award") in 1996 for his great contribution to the aquarium hobby. His wife Fang Fang Kullander (1962–2010) was also an ichthyologist at the Swedish Museum. 

Michael Noren. Curator of Fishbase Sweden, Swedish Museum of Natural History

(Sources: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danio_annulosus) 

A new species of fish has been named after President Barack Obama

Etymology: Etheostoma: Greek, etheo = to strain + Greek, stoma = mouth; 

A new species of fish has been named after President Barack Obama by the researchers who discovered it. The freshwater fish has distinctive bright orange and blue colours and is generally found in fast-flowing rivers around America. It is one of five new species of darter - the smallest member of the perch family - to be discovered in recent months. This species is one of five distinct species were named after former U.S. presidents and a vice-president, based on their leadership in conservation. E. obama was named after Barack Obama, for his work "particularly in the areas of clean energy and environmental protection, and because he is one of our first leaders to approach conservation and environmental protection from a more global vision," according to one of the scientists, Steve Layman, who named the new species

Etheostoma obama  Mayden & Layman, 2012

Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes) > Perciformes (Perch-likes) > Percidae (Perches) > Etheostomatinae

Rafinesque said "various mouths", but Jordan and Evermann suggest the name might have been intended as "Heterostoma;  obama: Named for President Barack Obama, United States of America, for his environmental leadership, particularly in the areas of clean energy and environmental protection, and also for being one of the first leaders to approach conservation and environmental protection from a more global vision; noun in apposition.

Dorsal spines (total): 10 - 14; Dorsal soft rays (total): 10-13; Anal spines: 2; Anal soft rays: 8 - 11. This breeding male of this species (under the subgenus Doration) is distinguished by the following characters: a spinous dorsal fin with blue marginal and submedial bands, orange medial band, basal band with bright orange pigment; the soft dorsal, caudal, and pectoral fins have distinct bright orange spots on rays; soft dorsal and anal fins with blue in base of fin; anal fin sometimes with orange spots or streaks on rays; the face and lower head tangerine orange with blue on operculum, preoperculum, cheek, and suborbital bar (but not on lips and mid-gular region); quadrate lateral blue blotches extending ventrad from lateral line scale row; the basicaudal blue bar extending from dorsal to ventral margin of caudal fin; no frenum; incomplete lateral line, unpored scales modally >10 (12); cheek partially scaled; palatine teeth usually absent; present in 29% of specimens; modal counts for D XII-XIII,12, A 9, pectoral fin 15, principal caudal 15, caudal peduncle scales 16, preoperculomandibular canal pores 10; allozyme products of sIdh-A locus are characterized by relative mobilities b, e, and g. 

Distribution: North America: United States of America (Tennessee). 

Burrowing Goby fish recorded from coastal area of Bangladesh

Gobiids are poorly explored in the freshwater's of Bangladesh. Gobies of the genus are also known as eel gobies which belong to the family Gobiidae, which alludes to their attenuated body shape. These species inhabits estuaries (Talwer and Jhingran, 1991), shallow coastal water and rivers (Allen, 1991). This group is morphologically unique among Gobiidae, having an elongate body, small eyes covered with skin and numerous distinct dermal folds, lobes, or barbels on the head. Fourteen nominal species were recognized in the genus  Taenioidess. str. (Murdy and Randall, 2002). Measurements were made from Gobiidae specimens preserved in 70% ethanol for taxonomic study. Some of these are mentioned following the comprehensive systematic accounts of the Inland Fishes of the Indian Region and Adjacent countries (Talwar and Jhingran, 1991) and Freshwater Fishes of the World (Sterba, G. 1962).

Scientific Name : Trypauchen vagina (Bloch and Schneider, 1801); Local name: Sada Chewa; English name: Burrowing Goby
During the study a total of 6 specimens of Trypauchen vagina (Bloch and Schneider, 1801) species have counted individually and comparatively described below with distribution and taken original photograph.

Trypauchen vagina (Bloch and Schneider, 1801)  © Md.Muzammel Hossain

Taxonomic position: Phylum: Chordata-chordates; Class: Actinopterygii-ray finned fishes, spiny rayed fishes; Order: Perciformes- perch like fishes; Family: Gobiidae –true gobies, gobies, Genus: Trypauchen Cuvier and Valenciennes, 1837; Species: Trypauchen vagina (Bloch and Schneider, 1801).

Distribution: Trypauchen vagina (Bloch and Schneider, 1801) species were found inhabits holes beneath tide pools and mud habitats in the near shore areas of Hatiya and Nijhum Island area of junction between Meghna River and Sea and GPS location 22̊ 02 ́ 30.6 ̋ N, 90̊  58 ́ 24.5 ̋ E. Also it was recorded in Pasur River is near the Sundarbans in Bagerhat, Mongla 22.4833°N, 89.6083°E; Bhola and Cox’s bazaar estuaries area.

Description: Morphometric  measurements  are as follows, Number of Fin Rays/Spines: Total dorsal fin rays 50-57; Pectoral Fin Rays 17;  Pelvic Fin Rays 12; Anal Fin Rays 44-50; Caudal Fin Rays 14; Mouth position Superior; Branchiostegal Rays 5; Body measurement: Maximum Total Length 14.4 cm and standard length 12.3 cm ; Pre-Dorsal length 2.51 cm;  Body Depth 1.34 cm; Head measurement: Eye diameter 2.0 mm; Pre Orbital Length 5.4 mm; Post Orbital Length 14.0 mm; Inter Orbital Length 3.6 mm; Fin base length: 1^st Dorsal Fin Base length 96 mm; Pectoral Fin Base Length 4.2 mm and Pectoral Fin length 7.2 mm; Pelvic Fin base length 2.9 mm and Pelvic Fin length 8.2 mm; Anal fin Base length 58 mm; Scales Above Lateral Line 75–85; Scales Below Lateral Line 6⅟2; Scales along lateral line 6⅟2. Body is pinky-white, compressed elongate and eyes blackish; barbell absent on head; Cycloid scales; Teeth in both jaws and caninoid; gill opening moderate; Pectoral short conical. Dorsal and anal fins grey; dorsal and anal connected with caudal fin; the species is not listed endangered in the Red List of IUCN Bangladesh (2000).

Meristic measurements are as follows: SL/TL= 0.854; HL/SL = 0.203; Pelvic Fin length (PEL)/SL = 0.066; PEL/HL = 0.328;   Pectoral Fin length (PEC)/SL= 0.058; PEC/HL = 0.288; PEC/PEL = 0.878; Body Depth (BD)/SL = 0.108; Pre-Dorsal length (PDL)/SL = 0.204; Inter Orbital Length (IOL)/SL = 0.029.

References:  1. STERBA, G. 1962. Freshwater Fishes of the World. Vista Books, London. 847 pp. 2. TALWAR, P.K. and JHINGRAN, A.G. 1991. Inland Fishes of India and Adjacent Countries. Vol. 1 & 2. Oxford & IBH Publishing Co. Pvt. Ltd., New Delhi, India. 1158 pp. 3. MURDY EO and RANDALL JE 2002. Taenioides kentalleni, a new species of eel goby from Saudi Arabia (Gobiidae: Amblyopinae). Zootaxa 93: 1–6. 4. IUCN Bangladesh. 2000. Red Book of Threatened Fishes of Bangladesh. IUCN-The World Conservation Union. Xii+116pp.

Author information : Md. Muzammel Hossain, Department of Zoology, Jagannath University, Bangladesh (Corresponding email: muzammel3@gmail.com)