A new spined loach species Cobitis jadovaensis is described from the Jadova River in Croatia. This species differs from its congeners in the Croatian Adriatic basin with a unique set of characters: a very short dorsal fin base; short anal fin base; narrow head; a single lamina circularis; a single small prominent dark inclined spot on the upper part of the caudal base; all four Gambetta zones well developed and reaching beyond the dorsal base; zones Z1 and Z3 with many irregular spots; zone Z1 narrower than Z2; zone Z2 as wide as Z3; zone Z2 with spots larger than a pupil size fuses with Z3 on caudal peduncle; zone Z4 wider than Z2 and Z3, with 11 – 14 roundish to oval blotches.