A sculpin is a type of fish that belongs to the superfamily Cottoidea in the order Scorpaeniformes. As of 2006, this superfamily contains 7 families, 94 genera, and 387 species.
Lake Baikal is a rift lake in Russia. It is situated in southern Siberia, between the federal subjects of Irkutsk Oblast to the northwest and the Republic of Buryatia to the southeast. With 23,615.39 km3 (5,670 cu mi) of water, Lake Baikal is the world's largest freshwater lake by volume, containing 22–23% of the world's fresh surface water, more than all of the North American Great Lakes combined. It is also the world's deepest lake, with a maximum depth of 1,642 metres, and the world's oldest lake, at 25–30 million years. At 31,722 km2 (12,248 sq mi)—slightly larger than Belgium—Lake Baikal is the world's seventh-largest lake by surface area. It is among the world's clearest lakes.
Lake Tanganyika is an African Great Lake. It is the second-oldest freshwater lake in the world, the second-largest by volume, and the second-deepest, in all cases after Lake Baikal in Siberia. It is the world's longest freshwater lake. The lake is shared among four countries—Tanzania, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Burundi, and Zambia, with Tanzania (46%) and DRC (40%) possessing the majority of the lake. It drains into the Congo River system and ultimately into the Atlantic Ocean.
The Cottidae are a family of fish in the superfamily Cottoidea, the sculpins. It is the largest sculpin family, with about 275 species in 70 genera. They are referred to simply as cottids to avoid confusion with sculpins of other families.
Agonidae is a family of small, bottom-dwelling, cold-water marine fish. Common names for members of this family include poachers, Irish lords, sea ravens, alligatorfishes, starsnouts, hooknoses, and rockheads. They are notable for having elongated bodies covered by scales modified into bony plates, and for using their large pectoral fins to move in short bursts. The family includes about 59 species in some 25 genera, some of which are quite widespread.
Cottus is a genus of the mainly freshwater ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Cottidae, the typical sculpins. They are often referred to as the "freshwater sculpins", as they are the principal genus of sculpins to be found in fresh water. They are native to the Palearctic and Nearctic.
The scaled sculpins, Icelus, are a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Cottidae, the typical sculpins. Most of the fishes in this genus are found in the northern Pacific Ocean but they also occur in the North Atlantic Ocean.
Comephorus, known as the golomyankas or Baikal oilfish, are a genus comprising two species of peculiar, sculpin fishes endemic to Lake Baikal in Russia. Comephorus is the only genus in the subfamily Comephorinae. Golomyankas are pelagic fishes which make the main food source of the Baikal seal.
Clinocottus is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Cottidae, the typical sculpins. They are nearshore benthic fishes native to the northeastern Pacific Ocean. They are mentioned as sharpnose sculpins.
Cottinella boulengeri, the short-headed sculpin, is a species of freshwater fish, a deepwater sculpin endemic to Lake Baikal in Russia. It lives at depths of from 400 to 1,600 metres, and is not longer than 12.2 centimetres (4.8 in) TL. This species is the only known member of its genus.
Icelinusis a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Cottidae, the typical sculpins. These fishes are found in the northern and eastern Pacific Ocean.
Oligocottus is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Cottidae, the typical sculpins. These sculpins are found in the northern and eastern Pacific Ocean.
Batrachocottus is a genus of freshawater ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Cottidae, the typical sculpins. These fishes are endemic to the Lake Baikal watershed in Russia.
Cottocomephorus is a genus of freshwater ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Cottidae, the typical sculpins. This genus is endemic to Lake Baikal and its surrounding tributaries in Russia. They have relatively large pectoral fins and reach up to 22 cm in total length. They are an important food for the Baikal seal, during the winter second only to the golomyankas.
Dmitrii Nikolaevich Taliev was a Soviet Russian ichthyologist and limnologist, notable for his work on the Lake Baikal.
Abyssocottus elochini is a species of ray-finned fish belonging to the family Cottidae, the typical sculpins. These sculpins are endemic to Lake Baikal in Russia. It is known to dwell at a depth range of 250–300 metres.
Abyssocottus korotneffi is a species of ray-finned fish belonging to the family Cottidae, the typical sculpins. These sculpins are endemic to Lake Baikal in Russia. It is known to dwell at a depth range of 120–1,600 m (390–5,250 ft), most commonly between 460–500 m (1,510–1,640 ft). Males can reach a maximum total length of 12.6 cm (5.0 in) and females 13.2 cm (5.2 in). Maximum age is 12 years. Females harbour about 20 eggs in each ovary.
Limnocottus griseus is a deepwater sculpin. It was described by Dmitrii Nikolaevich Taliev in 1955, originally as a subspecies of Abyssocottus godlewskii. It is a freshwater fish which is endemic to Lake Baikal, Russia. It is known to dwell at a depth range of 250–1300 metres.
The bighead sculpin is a species of sculpin fish that is endemic to the Lake Baikal watershed in Siberia, Russia. It typically lives on rocky bottoms, often in places with sponges, at depths of 5 to 70 m (16–230 ft), but can occur as deep as 120 m (390 ft). Its colour varies from grayish to brownish or greenish depending on the bottom type. It can reach up to 22 cm (8.7 in) in length, but most are 13–16 cm (5.1–6.3 in). It feeds on a wide range of smaller animals such as young fish, insect larvae, amphipods, molluscs and oligochaetes. Breeding is in the spring where the female lays 618 to 1622 eggs, which are guarded by the male.
Jordaniidae is a small family of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the order Scorpaeniformes. These fishes are found in the eastern North Pacific Ocean.
