Why in news?
Channa bhoi is a newly discovered species of snakehead fish from Meghalaya. Scientists identified it in a mountain stream near Iewmawlong village in Ri-Bhoi district.​
Discovery Details
- Researchers described Channa bhoi in late 2025, naming it after the indigenous Bhoi community of the Khasi tribe in the region.
- The species belongs to the diverse "Gachua group" of snakehead fishes prevalent in the Eastern Himalayas, raising India's recorded Channa species to 26.​
Key Characteristics
- It features a bluish-grey body with minute black spots forming 8-9 horizontal rows of broken lines along the sides, plus distinctive wavy banding on grayish-yellow pectoral fins.
- Genetic analysis shows it as a sister species to Channa bipuli, with 3.3–20.4% divergence in the cox1 gene.
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