Researchers have discovered a rare species of fish from subterranean waters of South India that looks like a dragon, swims like an eel, and has remained hidden for a hundred million years.
- The newly discovered fish has been named ‘Aenigmachanna gollum’ which belongs to an old family of fish, called dragon snakeheads, which retains its primitive characteristics after all these millennia.
- The fist has been named after the dark and conflicted character of JRR Tolkien’s epic saga ‘Lord of the Rings’.
- It was discovered in a flooded paddy field in Kochi, Britz .
- The discovery of a new family of fish is very rare. The dragon snakeheads have evaded scientists till now because they live in subterranean aquifers and come to the surface only after heavy flooding from rain.
- Besides the Gollum, a sister species has also been discovered, called ‘Aenigmachanna mahabali’.
(Indian Express)
CLICK HERE FOR UPSC PRELIMS CURRENT AFFAIRS MCQ
