Gymnocephalus

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Gymnocephalus
Gymnocephalus cernuus.jpg
Eurasian ruffe, (G. cernua)
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Perciformes
Family: Percidae
Subfamily: Acerinae
Bleeker, 1858 [1]
Genus: Gymnocephalus
Bloch, 1793
Type species
Perca schraetser
Synonyms [3]

Gymnocephalus is a genus of ray-finned fishes from the family Percidae, which includes the perches, pike-perches and darters. They are from the Western Palearctic area, although one species, Gymnocephalus cernua has been accidentally introduced to the Great Lakes region where it is regarded as an invasive species. They have the common name "ruffe" and resemble the true perches in the genus Perca, but are usually smaller and have a different pattern.

Contents

Characteristics

The species within the genus Gymnocephalus have a number of characters in common including that their dorsal fins are not completely separate, they have enlarged canals extending from the lateral line on their heads, the preorbital bone covers the maxillary bone, presence of setiform or bristle-like teeth, having very few or no vomerine and palatine teeth and the possession of three paired bones in the neck, known as extrascapulars, in their lateral line system, of which, two are simple tubes. [4]

Species

There are currently five recognized species in this genus: [5]

Taxonomy

Gymnocephalus was created by the German physician and naturalist Marcus Elieser Bloch (1723-1799) with Perca schraester as the type species. It has traditionally been placed in the subfamily Percinae alongside the true perch of the genus Perca. [5] [2] However, Gymnocephalus appears to be the sister taxon to both the Percinae and to the Luciopercinae. [4] The 5th edition of Fishes of the World treats Gymnocephalus as the only genus in the monotypic subfamily Acerinae, [6] although Gill's Gymnocephalinae is referred to in some sources. [1] The name of the genus is a compound of the Greek gymno meaning "naked" and kephalos meaning "head". [7] Within the genus molecular studies have shown that the ruffe G. cernua is sister to a clade consisting of the Danube ruff G. baloni and the schraetzer or striped ruffe G. schraetser, and that these last two species originated from a common ancestor about 8 million years ago and it has also been suggested that the relatively newly described G. ambriaelacus may be synonymous with G. baloni. G. acerina has not had its genetics sampled which would assist understanding of the genus's phylogenetics. [4]

Geographic distribution

The species in the genus Gymnocephalus are found in Europe and one species, G. cernua having been accidentally introduced to North America in ballast water, originating form the river Elbe in Germany, near the mouth of the St Louis River in Lake Superior. [4] This species has also been introduced outside of its native range in Europe. [8]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Percidae</span> Family of fishes

The Percidae are a family of ray-finned fish, part of the order Perciformes, which are found in fresh and brackish waters of the Northern Hemisphere. The majority are Nearctic, but there are also Palearctic species. The family contains more than 200 species in 11 genera. The perches and their relatives are in this family; well-known species include the walleye, sauger, ruffe, and three species of perch. However, small fish known as darters are also a part of this family.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zander</span> Species of fish

The zander, sander or pikeperch, is a species of ray-finned fish from the family Percidae, which also includes perch, ruffe and darter. It is found in freshwater and brackish habitats in western Eurasia. It is a popular game fish and has been introduced to a variety of localities outside its native range. It is the type species of the genus Sander.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rhamphocottidae</span>

Rhamphocottidae is a family of ray-finned fishes belonging to the superfamily Cottoidea, the sculpins. The species in this family occur in the North Pacific Ocean.

Zoarces is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Zoarcidae, the eelpouts. It is the only genus in the subfamily Zoarcinae. These eelpouts are found in the northern Atlantic and northern Pacific Oceans.

<i>Sander</i> (fish) Genus of fishes

Sander is a genus of predatory ray-finned fish in the family Percidae, which also includes the perches, ruffes, and darters. They are also known as "pike-perch" because of their resemblance to fish in the unrelated Esocidae (pike) family. They are the only genus in the monotypic tribe Luciopercini, which is one of two tribes in the subfamily Luciopercinae,

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wreckfish</span> Family of deep-water marine perciform fish

The wreckfish are a family, Polyprionidae in the suborder Percoidei of the order Perciformes.

<i>Drepane</i> (fish) Genus of fishes

Drepane is a genus of marine and brackish water ray-finned fishes, known commonly as the sicklefishes. It is the only genus in the monotypic percomorph family Drepaneidae. These fish occur in the Indian and western Pacific Oceans, and in the eastern Atlantic near Africa.

<i>Ammocrypta</i> Genus of fishes

Ammocrypta is a genus of freshwater ray-finned fish, commonly known as the sand darters, which is classified in the subfamily Etheostomatinae, part of the family Percidae which also includes the perches, ruffes and pikeperches. The species in the genus occur in eastern North America in Canada and the continental United States.

<i>Crystallaria</i> Genus of fishes

Crystallaria is a genus of freshwater ray-finned fish which is classified in the subfamily Etheostomatinae, commonly known as the darters, part of the family Percidae which also includes the perches, ruffes and pikeperches. They are found in the Mississippi River basin from Ohio to Minnesota and in southern Mississippi, northern Louisiana, and southeastern Oklahoma, and on the Gulf Slope of Escambia, Mobile Bay, and the Pearl River drainages. They have now been extirpated from Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, and Illinois.

<i>Percilia</i> Genus of fishes

Percilia is a genus of perch-like fish in the monogeneric family Perciliidae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Balon's ruffe</span> Species of fish

Balon's ruffe, also known as the Danube ruffe, is a species of freshwater ray-finned fish, a ruffe, from the family Percidae which is native to the drainages of the Danube from delta to Germany and the Dnieper from delta to Kyiv and is expected to occur in the Dniester. It inhabits areas with sand or mud substrates. It is active at night and feeds on small invertebrates. This species can reach a length of 15 centimetres (5.9 in) SL. It is named after Polish-Canadian ichthyologist Eugene K. Balon (1930-2013).

<i>Percarina</i> Genus of fishes

Percarina is a genus of ray-finned fish in the family Percidae found in eastern Europe. The genus is the only taxon in the monotypic subfamily Percarininae, which is characterised by having the first dorsal fin, having 9-11 spines and being widely separated from the second dorsal fin. They are thought to be closely related both to the perches of the genus Perca and to the ruffes of the genus Gymnocephalus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Volga pikeperch</span> Species of fish

The Volga pikeperch, or Volga zander, is a species of fish in the perch family Percidae. It is found in Austria, Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Hungary, Moldova, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, and Ukraine.

Gymnocephalus ambriaelacus is a species of freshwater ray-finned fish, a ruffe, from the family Percidae which is endemic to Lake Ammersee, in the upper Danube basin in southern Germany. This species can reach a length is 11.7 centimetres (4.6 in) (SL). The species is classified as Critically Endangered as its population is declining following the introduction of the ruffe. Some authorities suggest that this taxon may be synonymous with the Balon's ruffe.

<i>Zingel zingel</i> Species of fish

Zingel zingel, the zingel, is a species of freshwater ray-finned fish in the family Percidae. It is found in fast-flowing streams in southeastern Europe. It is the type species of the genus Zingel.

<i>Eschmeyer nexus</i> Species of fish

Easchmeyer nexus is a species of marine ray-finned fish; it is the only species in the monotypic genus Eschmeyer and monogeneric family Eschmeyeridae. This fish is only known from the Pacific Ocean, near Fiji.

<i>Kyphosus</i> Genus of fishes

Kyphosus is a genus of sea chubs native to the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific oceans. It is the only genus in the subfamily Kyphosinae of the family Kyphosidae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Luciopercinae</span> Subfamily of fishes

The Luciopercinae is a subfamily of ray-finned fish, classified within the family Percidae, the subfamily includes the pike-perches and zingels. The pike-perches of the genus Sander have an Holarctic distribution while the zingels of the tribe Romanichthyini are found in Europe. They are largely freshwater species but some can be found in brackish water.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Romanichthyini</span> Tribe of fishes

Romanichthyini is a tribe of freshwater ray-finned fish which is one of two tribes in the subfamily Luciopercinae, which in turn is classified under the family Percidae, the family also includes the perches, pikeperches, ruffes and darters.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Etheostomatinae</span> Subfamily of fishes

Etheosomatidae is a species-rich subfamily of freshwater ray-finned fish, the members of which are commonly known as the darters. The subfamily is part of the family Percidae which also includes the perches, ruffes and pikeperches. The family is endemic to North America. It consists of three to five different genera and well over 200 species.

References

  1. 1 2 Richard van der Laan; William N. Eschmeyer & Ronald Fricke (2014). "Family-group names of Recent fishes". Zootaxa. 3882 (2): 001–230. doi: 10.11646/zootaxa.3882.1.1 . PMID   25543675.
  2. 1 2 Eschmeyer, William N.; Fricke, Ron & van der Laan, Richard (eds.). "Gymnocephalus". Catalog of Fishes . California Academy of Sciences . Retrieved 13 September 2020.
  3. ↑ Eschmeyer, William N.; Fricke, Ron & van der Laan, Richard (eds.). "Genera in the family Percinae". Catalog of Fishes . California Academy of Sciences . Retrieved 13 September 2020.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Carol A. Stepien & Amanda Haponski (2015). "Taxonomy, Distribution, and Evolution of the Percidae". In Patrick Kestemont; Konrad Dabrowski & Robert C. Summerfelt (eds.). Biology and Culture of Percid Fishes. Springer, Dordrecht. pp. 3–60. doi:10.1007/978-94-017-7227-3_1. ISBN   978-94-017-7227-3.
  5. 1 2 Froese, Rainer and Pauly, Daniel, eds. (2014). Species of Gymnocephalus in FishBase . February 2014 version.
  6. ↑ J. S. Nelson; T. C. Grande; M. V. H. Wilson (2016). Fishes of the World (5th ed.). Wiley. pp. 448–450. ISBN   978-1-118-34233-6.
  7. ↑ Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.) (2006). "Gymnocephalus cernua" in FishBase . December 2006 version.
  8. ↑ Colin E. Adams; Peter S. Maitland (1998). "The Ruffe Population of Loch Lomond, Scotland: Its Introduction, Population Expansion, and Interaction with Native Species (abstract)". Journal of Great Lakes Research. 24 (2): 249–262. doi:10.1016/s0380-1330(98)70817-2.
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