A new species of fighting fish from the Malay Peninsula has been described in the most recent issue of the Bulletin of Fish Biology.
Named Betta kuehnei after its collector (Jens Khne) by Ingo Schindler and Jrgen Schmidt, the new species is considered a member of the B. pugnax species-group and can be distinguished by its rounded caudal fin, the absence of a chin bar and a second postorbital stripe, intense blue or bluish-green iridescence on the sides of the head and throat in males and the fusion of the short second central stripe with the central stripe on the body above the front part of the anal fin.
Betta kuehnei is known from northern Peninsular Malaysia (in the state of Kelantan) and southern Thailand (in the province of Narathiwat).
According to the authors, the type locality is a shaded, forested creek with clear water of pH 7,0, hardness 3 dGH and temperature about 25C. The fighting fishes were caught in the shallow water amongst aquatic plants and leaf litter.
For more information, see the paper: Schindler, I and J Schmidt (2009) Betta kuehnei, a new species of fighting fish (Teleostei, Osphronemidae) from the Malay Peninsula. Bulletin of Fish Biology 10, pp. 39"46.