Rheophile
# Rheophile

A rheophile is an animal that prefers to live in fast-moving water.

## Examples of rheophilic animals

### Insects

* Many aquatic insects living in riffles require current to survive.
* Epeorus sylvicola, a rheophilic mayfly species (Ephemeroptera)
* Some African (Elattoneura) and Asian threadtail (Prodasineura) species

### Birds

* Dippers (Cinclus)
* Grey wagtail (Motacilla cinerea) and mountain wagtail (Motacilla clara)
* A few swifts often nest behind waterfalls, including American black swift (Cypseloides niger), giant swiftlet (Hydrochous gigas), great dusky swift (Cypseloides senex) and white-collared swift (Streptoprocne zonaris)
* Some waterfowl, including African black duck (Anas sparsa), blue duck (Hymenolaimus malacorhynchos), Brazilian merganser (Mergus octosetaceus), bronze-winged duck (Speculanas specularis), harlequin duck (Histrionicus histrionicus), Salvadori's teal (Salvadorina waigiuensis) and torrent duck (Merganetta armata)

### Fish

A very large number of rheophilic fish species are known and include members of at least 419 genera in 60 families. Examples include:

* Many species in the family Balitoridae, also known as the hill stream loaches.
* Many species in the family Loricariidae from South and Central America
* Many Chiloglanis species, which are freshwater catfish from Africa
* The family Gyrinocheilidae.
* Rheophilic cichlid genera/species:
   * The Lamena group in the genus Paretroplus from Madagascar.
   * Oxylapia polli from Madagascar.
   * Retroculus species from the Amazon Basin and rivers in the Guianas in South America.
   * Steatocranus species from the Congo River Basin in Africa.
   * Teleocichla species from the Amazon Basin in South America.
   * Teleogramma species from the Congo River Basin in Africa.
* Mylesinus, Myleus, Ossubtus, Tometes and Utiaritichthys, which are serrasalmids from tropical South America
* The Danube streber (Zingel streber), family Percidae.

### Molluscs

* Ancylus fluviatilis
* Aylacostoma species
* Lymnaea ovata

### Amphibians

* Neurergus strauchii, a newt from Turkey
* Pachytriton labiatus, a newt from China
