''Catostomus'' is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

of fish belonging to the family

Catostomidae The Catostomidae are the suckers of the order (biology), order Cypriniformes, with about 78 species in this family (biology), family of freshwater fishes. The Catostomidae are almost exclusively native to North America. The only exceptions are ' ...

, commonly known as suckers. This genus of fish usually lives in freshwater basins. Most members of the genus are native to North America, but '' C. catostomus'' is also found in Russia. A majority of species inhabit western North America, with only ''C. catostomus'', ''C. commersonii'', and ''C. utawana'' being found in eastern North America.

Characteristics

The members of this genus have nearly cylindrical bodies. They have large, horizontal mouths, and their lips are very much papillose. They have complete lateral lines. They have from 54 to 124 scales, seven to 17 dorsal rays, usually seven anal rays, and 20 to 44 thin, unbranched rakers on their first

gill arch Branchial arches or gill arches are a series of paired bony/ cartilaginous "loops" behind the throat ( pharyngeal cavity) of fish, which support the fish gills. As chordates, all vertebrate embryos develop pharyngeal arches, though the event ...

es. Their gas bladders have two chambers. The young of many of the species in the genus have three dark grey blotches along their sides.

Hybridization

Catostomus from different species of the genus are known to readily hybridize with each other. The fish was used as a study object by biologists, revealing that fish hybridization can vary greatly from place to place. Although different species of this fish are reproductively isolated under normal circumstances this isolating barrier disappears to a certain extent as the environment changes. In addition, in areas where backcross and hybridization were widespread, the scientists found offspring of recombinant hybrids with new ecological characteristics that made them more adapted to the local environment and even more competitive with native species. Hybridization between different species of ''Catostomus'' fish occurs on a large scale, which means that many different environmental factors are involved in these geographic areas. This pattern of hybridization is also an effective mechanism for species self-protection. Although the hybrid forms of ''Catostomus'' fish break the common reproductive isolation between species, related research results can help to lead the protection of the waters where ''Catostomus'' fish live.

Species

Currently, 22 recognized species are in this genus:Smith, G.R., Stewart, J.D. & Carpenter, N.E. (2013): Fossil and recent mountain suckers, ''Pantosteus'', and significance of introgression in catostomin fishes of Western United States. ''Occasional Papers of the Museum of Zoology University of Michigan, 743: 1-59.'' * '' Catostomus ardens'' D. S. Jordan & C. H. Gilbert, 1881 (Utah sucker) * '' Catostomus bernardini'' Girard, 1856 (Yaqui sucker) * '' Catostomus cahita'' Siebert & W. L. Minckley, 1986 (Cahita sucker) * '' Catostomus catostomus'' ( J. R. Forster, 1773) ** '' Catostomus catostomus catostomus'' (J. R. Forster, 1773) (Longnose sucker) ** ''C. c. cristatus'' (Cope, 1883) ** ''C. c. lacustris'' (Bajkov, 1927) (Jasper longnose sucker) * '' Catostomus columbianus'' ( C. H. Eigenmann & R. S. Eigenmann, 1893) (Bridgelip sucker) * '' Catostomus commersonii'' ( Lacépède, 1803) (White sucker) * '' Catostomus conchos'' (Meek, 1902) * '' Catostomus fumeiventris'' R. R. Miller, 1973 (Owens sucker) * '' Catostomus insignis'' Baird & Girard, 1854 (Sonora sucker) * '' Catostomus latipinnis'' Baird & Girard, 1853 (flannelmouth sucker) * '' Catostomus leopoldi'' Siebert & W. L. Minckley, 1986 (Bavispe sucker) * '' Catostomus macrocheilus'' Girard, 1856 (largescale sucker) * '' Catostomus microps'' Rutter, 1908 (Modoc sucker) * '' Catostomus occidentalis'' Ayres, 1854 ** ''C. o. lacusanserinus'' Fowler, 1913 (Goose Lake sucker) ** ''C. o. mnioltiltus'' Snyder, 1913 (Monterey sucker) ** ''C. o. occidentalis'' Ayres, 1854 (Sacramento sucker) * '' Catostomus platyrhynchus'' (Cope, 1874) (Mountain sucker) * '' Catostomus rimiculus'' C. H. Gilbert & Snyder, 1898 (Klamath smallscale sucker) * '' Catostomus snyderi'' C. H. Gilbert, 1898 (Klamath largescale sucker) * '' Catostomus tahoensis'' T. N. Gill & D. S. Jordan, 1878 (Tahoe sucker) * '' Catostomus tsiltcoosensis'' Evermann & Meek, 1898 (Tyee sucker) * '' Catostomus utawana'' F. W. Mather, 1886 (Summer sucker) * '' Catostomus warnerensis'' Snyder, 1908 (Warner sucker) * '' Catostomus wigginsi'' Herre & Brock, 1936 (Opata sucker) There are also two candidate species: * Wall Canyon sucker (C. L. Hubbs & R. R. Miller, 1934), which is sister to Warner sucker. * Elk Lake sucker (Carlson, Morse & Hekkala, 2015) which is sister to the

white White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

and summer suckers The genus '' Pantosteus'' was formerly classified as a

subgenus In biology, a subgenus ( subgenera) is a taxonomic rank directly below genus. In the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, a subgeneric name can be used independently or included in a species name, in parentheses, placed between the ge ...

of ''Catostomus''. However, more recent studies have found them to be a monophyletic group that forms a distinct clade from all other members of ''Catostomus'', and they also have a different morphology and ecological preferences from ''Catostomus''. Due to this, they are now treated as their own distinct genus.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q2271225 Catostomidae taxa named by Charles Alexandre Lesueur