Tarumania walkerae

Tarumania possesses a very unusual swim bladder, divided into eleven separate compartments (as opposed to one or two in most fish) which extends along almost the entire length of the body. Its body is extremely elongated and oval-shaped, giving the fish an eel-like appearance. Like the unrelated Lepidogalaxias, they have a flexible "neck" that allows them to bend their head at a right angle relative to the trunk. All specimens of Tarumania were recovered from isolated pools among the leaf-litter of the forest, where they appear to hunt invertebrates such as shrimp on the flooded forest floor. They are well adapted to swim amongst tangled undergrowth, with very mobile pelvic fins that move independently of each other and the ability to twist separately from the rest of the body. They are able to breathe air in shallow-water conditions, but the swim bladder is not involved. Instead they absorb oxygen through their oral cavity.

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