Catostomidae

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Suckers
Fossil range: Middle Eocene - Present
quillback, Carpiodes cyprinus
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Cypriniformes
Suborder: Cobitoidea
Family: Catostomidae
Genera

Amyzon
Carpiodes
Catostomus
Chasmistes
Cycleptus
Deltistes
Erimyzon
Hypentelium
Ictiobus
Minytrema
Moxostoma
Myxocyprinus
Thoburnia
Vasnetzovia
Xyrauchen
See text for species.

Catostomidae is the sucker family of the order Cypriniformes.

There are 80 species in this family of freshwater fishes. Catostomidae are found in North America, east central China, and eastern Siberia. Their mouth is located on the underside of the head (subterminal), with thick, fleshy lips. Most species are less than 60 cm (2 feet) in length but the largest species can reach 1 m (40 inches). They are not usually fished recreationally; they are not highly prized in North America for their flesh although they are a fairly popular target with spear fisherman.

Catostomids are most often found in rivers but can be found in any freshwater environment. Their food ranges from detritus and bottom dwelling organisms (such as crustaceans and worms), to surface insects and small fishes.

Contents

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[edit] Fossil record

Catostomidae have been uncovered and dated to the Middle Eocene in Colorado and Utah. An enormous gap (36.2 million years) in the fossil record occurs from the Late Eocene to Early Pleistocene[1].

[edit] As food

They are preferentially harvested in the spring, during their spawning run. They can be fried, canned or smoked.

[edit] Species

Subfamily Catostominae

Tribe Catostomini
Tribe Erimyzoninae
  • Genus Erimyzon
    • Creek chubsucker, Erimyzon oblongus (Mitchill, 1814).
    • Lake chubsucker, Erimyzon sucetta (Lacépède, 1803).
    • Sharpfin chubsucker, Erimyzon tenuis (Agassiz, 1855).
  • Genus Minytrema
    • Spotted sucker, Minytrema melanops (Rafinesque, 1820).
Tribe Thoburniinae
  • Genus Hypentelium
    • Alabama hog sucker, Hypentelium etowanum (Jordan, 1877).
    • Northern hog sucker, Hypentelium nigricans (Lesueur, 1817).
    • Roanoke hog sucker, Hypentelium roanokense Raney & Lachner, 1947.
  • Genus Thoburnia
    • Blackfin sucker, Thoburnia atripinnis (Bailey, 1959).
    • Rustyside sucker, Thoburnia hamiltoni (Raney & Lachner, 1946).
    • Torrent sucker, Thoburnia rhothoeca (Thoburn, 1896).
Tribe Moxostomatini

Subfamily Cycleptinae

Subfamily Ictiobinae

Subfamily Myxocyprininae

[edit] References

  • "Catostomidae". FishBase. Ed. Rainer Froese and Daniel Pauly. February 2006 version. N.p.: FishBase, 2006.
  • Bruner, John Clay 1991. Comments on the Genus Amyzon (Family Catostomidae) Journal of Paleontology 654:678-686
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