Lucifuga spelaeotes Cohen & Robins, 1970
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
The New Providence cusk-eel (Lucifuga spelaeotes), also known as the Bahama cavefish, is a species of cavefish in the family Bythitidae. It is endemic to the Bahamas, where it has been reported from a small number of marine blue holes, inland caverns and chasms. It is the only known cusk eel species that can occur in surface waters; all others exclusively live in the deep parts of the ocean, or in underwater caves. It was first described in 1970.
Wikipedia contributors, New Providence cusk-eel; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T23:04:59.433614+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Lucifuga spelaeotes Cohen & Robins, 1970
- Name authority
- Cohen & Robins, 1970
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Teleostei
- Order
- Ophidiiformes
- Family
- Bythitidae
- Genus
- Lucifuga
- Extinction status
- Not supplied by this source
Source habitat flags: Marine: yes · Freshwater: no · Terrestrial: no. These do not form a complete habitat description.
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- gigaclassActinopterygii
- superclassActinopteri
- classTeleostei
- orderOphidiiformes
- familyBythitidae Gill, 1861
- genusLucifuga Poey, 1858
- speciesLucifuga spelaeotes Cohen & Robins, 1970
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Lucifuga. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Lucifuga dentata Poey, 1858 | BythitidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Lucifuga teresinarum Díaz Pérez, 1988 | BythitidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Lucifuga inopinata Cohen & McCosker, 1998 | BythitidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Lucifuga lucayana Møller, Schwarzhans, Iliffe & Nielsen, 2006 | BythitidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Lucifuga simile Nalbant, 1981 | BythitidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Lucifuga spelaeoteus Cohen & Robins, 1970 Cohen & Robins, 1970 | synonym |
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- Cohen, D. M., & Robins, C. R. (1970). A new ophidioid fish (genus Lucifuga) from a limestone sink, New Providence Island, Bahamas. Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington, 83 (11): 133–144. Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:3WBPR. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.