| Spotted bullhead | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Siluriformes |
| Family: | Ictaluridae |
| Genus: | Ameiurus |
| Species: | A. serracanthus |
| Binomial name | |
| Ameiurus serracanthus (Yerger & Relyea, 1968) | |
| Synonyms [2] | |
| |
The spotted bullhead (Ameiurus serracanthus) is a species of bullhead catfish endemic to the Southeastern United States. [3] [4]
The spotted bullhead is the smallest of the bullhead catfish, with its maximum length being only 9 inches (23 cm). The spotted bullhead is one of the more striking members of the bullhead family, with its yellow or cream colored spots being its most distinguishing feature. It is a member of a group of bullhead species having a black blotch at the base of the dorsal fin and a relatively large eye. The spotted catfish has a strongly serrated pectoral spine which has 6 to 20 large serrae. All the fins are edged in black, and the caudal fin is moderately emarginate. [3]
The spotted bullhead has confirmed records spanning Florida's northwest, northern, central and eastern Alabama, and northern and western Georgia. [3]
The spotted bullhead is a freshwater demersal fish, known to inhabit mainstem and large tributaries. It inhabits rocky or sandy substrates with moderate currents and is particularly fond of deep holes in the river systems. The spotted bullhead has been occasionally spotted over mud near vegetation, stumps and impounded portions of rivers. [3]
While no detailed studies of the diet of the spotted bullhead have been made, residents of northern Florida often refer to the spotted bullhead as "snailcat," (not to be confused with the snail bullhead) due to it being known to consume mollusks. Four different species of mollusks identified from stomach contents. [3]
Aside from human consumption and sport fishing the spotted bullhead may fall victim to predators such as otters and snapping turtles but it is particularly threatened by the presence of larger catfish. Bullhead catfishes are extremely vulnerable to predation by introduced species of large catfishes, such as flathead catfish and the blue catfish. Both of these species have been introduced into the Flint and Chattahoochee River systems. Population fragmentation is also a threat, particularly in heavily impounded Chattahoochee River. [3]
The spotted bullhead is not sought after commercially due to its small size though it has been known to occasionally appear in markets for human consumption. No Office International des Epizooties (OIE)–reportable diseases have been documented for this species. [3]
The spotted bass, also called spotty, or spots in various fishing communities, is a species of North American freshwater fish belonging to the sunfish family (Centrarchidae) of the order Perciformes. It is noted for the rows of dark spots below the lateral line, which give it its common name. One of the black basses, it is native to the Mississippi River basin and across the Gulf states, from central Texas through the Florida panhandle. Its native range extends into the western Mid-Atlantic states and it has been introduced into western North Carolina and Virginia. It has also been introduced to southern Africa, where it has become established in some isolated waters as an invasive species.
The flathead catfish, also called by several common names including mudcat or shovelhead cat, is a large species of North American freshwater catfish in the family Ictaluridae. It is the only species of the genus Pylodictis. Ranging from the lower Great Lakes region to northern Mexico, it has been widely introduced and is an invasive species in some areas. The closest living relative of the flathead catfish is the much smaller widemouth blindcat, Satan eurystomus.
The Ictaluridae, sometimes called ictalurids, are a family of catfish native to North America, where they are an important food source and sometimes fished for sport. The family includes about 51 species, some commonly known as bullheads, madtoms, channel catfish, and blue catfish.
The brown bullhead is a fish of the family Ictaluridae that is widely distributed in North America. It is a species of bullhead catfish and is similar to the black bullhead and yellow bullhead. It was originally described as Pimelodus nebulosus by Charles Alexandre Lesueur in 1819, and is also referred to as Ictalurus nebulosus.
The walking catfish is a species of freshwater airbreathing catfish native to Southeast Asia. It is named for its ability to "walk" and wiggle across dry land, to find food or suitable environments. While it does not truly walk as most bipeds or quadrupeds do, it can use its pectoral fins to keep it upright as it makes a wiggling motion with snakelike movements to traverse land. This fish normally lives in slow-moving and often stagnant waters in ponds, swamps, streams, and rivers, as well as in flooded rice paddies, or temporary pools that may dry up. When this happens, its "walking" skill allows the fish to move to other aquatic environments. Considerable taxonomic confusion surrounds this species and it has frequently been confused with other close relatives. One main distinction between the walking catfish and the native North American ictalurid catfish with which it sometimes is confused, is that the walking catfish lacks an adipose fin. It can survive 18 hours out of water.
The eel-tailed catfish, Tandanus tandanus, is a species of catfish of the family Plotosidae. This fish is also known as dewfish, freshwater catfish, jewfish, and tandan.
The black bullhead or black bullhead catfish is a species of bullhead catfish. Like other bullhead catfish, it has the ability to thrive in waters that are low in oxygen, brackish, turbid and/or very warm. It also has barbels located near its mouth, a broad head, spiny fins, and no scales. It can be identified from other bullheads as the barbels are black, and it has a tan crescent around the tail. Its caudal fin is truncated. Like virtually all catfish, it is nocturnal, preferring to feed at night, although young feed during the day. It generally does not get as large as the channel or blue catfish, with average adult weights are in the 1-to-2-pound range, and almost never as large as 4 pounds (1.8 kg). It has a typical length of 6–14 inches (15–36 cm), with the largest specimen being 24 inches (61 cm), making it the largest of the bullheads. It is typically black or dark brown on the dorsal side of its body and yellow or white on the ventral side.
The yellow bullhead is a species of bullhead catfish, a ray-finned fish that lacks scales.
Ameiurus is a genus of catfishes in the family Ictaluridae. It contains the three common types of bullhead catfish found in waters of the United States, the black bullhead, the brown bullhead, and the yellow bullhead, as well as other species, such as the white catfish, which are not typically called "bullheads".
Synodontis pardalis is a species of upside-down catfish that is endemic to Cameroon where it occurs in the Dja River drainage. It was first described by British-Belgian zoologist George Albert Boulenger in 1908, from specimens collected in the Dja River in southern Cameroon. The species name pardalis is derived from the Greek word pardalis, which means "leopard", which refers to the spotted pattern on the fish.
The white bullhead, also known as the white catfish, is a member of the family Ictaluridae of the order Siluriformes.
Noturus flavus, the stonecat, is a North American freshwater catfish of the family Ictaluridae. The common name is due to its habit of hiding near or under stones in fast-moving water.
Heterobranchus bidorsalis, the African catfish or eel-like fattyfin catfish, is an airbreathing catfish found in Africa. It is closely related to the vundu catfish, which is well-known among fishermen.
The bullhead minnow is a species of freshwater demersal fish, native to the Mississippi River system in the United States, to tributaries of Lake Huron and Lake Michigan and to northern Mexico.
The highfin carpsucker is a freshwater fish found in the southeastern and midwestern United States. Its usual habitat is medium to large-size rivers where it is mostly found 1 to 3 metres beneath the surface. It is a silvery fish with a prominent dorsal fin, which grows to an average length of 26.5 centimetres (10 in). It reaches sexual maturity at the age of three and females have 41,644 to 62,355 ova each. This fish forages on sandy or gravelly bottoms for such small invertebrates as crustaceans, protozoa and mollusks as well as filamentous algae. Young fish are preyed on by northern pike, muskellunge, walleye and largemouth bass and larger fish are caught by recreational fishermen. The highfin carpsucker competes with catfish and does not thrive in rivers with high levels of siltation.
Ameiurus platycephalus, the flat bullhead, is a species of North American freshwater catfish native to the waters of the southeastern United States from Virginia to Georgia. This species grows to a maximum length of 29 cm (11 in) TL though it is more commonly about 23 cm (9 in) long.
The freckled madtom a species of freshwater madtom (catfish) found in the eastern United States. The freckled madtom is a benthic feeder mostly of invertebrates and usually inhabits waters that are medium to large in size, living mostly in riffle areas that have mostly clear waters and rocky bottoms. Its spawning season occurs from spring to early summer in riffle areas, and sexual maturation occurs after two years.
The snail bullhead is a bony fish in the family Ictaluridae distributed widely in the southeastern United States. Among its bullhead catfish congeners, it has many North American relatives, like the brown bullhead and black bullhead. The species was described in 1877 by David Starr Jordan in the Ocmulgee River in Georgia.
