''Artedius'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial n ...

of marine

ray-finned fish Actinopterygii (; ), members of which are known as ray-finned fishes, is a class of bony fish. They comprise over 50% of living vertebrate species. The ray-finned fishes are so called because their fins are webs of skin supported by bony or h ...

es belonging to the

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

Cottidae 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.Kane, E. A. and T. E. Higham. (2012)Life in the flow lane: differences in pectoral fin morphology ...

, the typical sculpins. These fishes are found in the northern

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the contine ...

Taxonomy

''Artedius'' was first proposed as a genus in 1854 by the French

zoologist Zoology ()The pronunciation of zoology as is usually regarded as nonstandard, though it is not uncommon. is the branch of biology that studies the animal kingdom, including the structure, embryology, evolution, classification, habits, and ...

Charles Frédéric Girard Charles Frédéric Girard (8 March 1822 – 29 January 1895) was a French biologist specializing in ichthyology and herpetology. Born in Mulhouse, France, he studied at the College of Neuchâtel, Switzerland, as a student of Louis Agassiz. In 1 ...

with ''Scorpaenichthys lateralis'', described by Girard from

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the ...

in 1854, designated as its

type species In zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the species that contains the biological type specimen( ...

by Jordan and Evermann in 1896. The 5th edition of Fishes of the World classifies this genus in the subfamily Cottinae of the family Cottidae but other authorities classify it in the subfamily Oligocottinae of the family

Psychrolutidae The fish family Psychrolutidae (commonly known as blobfishes, toadfishes, flathead sculpins, tadpole sculpins,) contains over 35 recognized species in 8 genera. This family consists of bottom-dwelling marine sculpins shaped like tadpoles, with la ...

Etymology

''Artedius'' suffixes it’s, meaning “belonging to” onto Artedi, Girard did not explain who this was honouring but it is almost certain that it is

Peter Artedi Peter Artedi or Petrus Arctaedius (27 February 170528 September 1735) was a Swedish naturalist who is known as the "father of ichthyology". Artedi was born in Anundsjö in the province of Ångermanland. Intending to become a clergyman, he went ...

, the “father of ichthyology”.

Species

There are currently five recognized species in this genus: * ''

Artedius corallinus ''Artedius corallinus'', the coralline sculpin, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Cottidae, the typical sculpins. It is found in the eastern North Pacific along the coasts of the western United States and Baja Califor ...

'' ( C. L. Hubbs, 1926) (coralline sculpin) * ''

Artedius fenestralis ''Artedius fenestralis'', the padded sculpin, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Cottidae, the typical sculpins. The species is native to the eastern Pacific, with a range extending from the Alaska Peninsula to South ...

'' D. S. Jordan & C. H. Gilbert, 1883 (padded sculpin) * ''

Artedius harringtoni ''Artedius harringtoni'', also known as the scalyhead sculpin or plumose sculpin, is a demersal species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Cottidae, the typical sculpins. The species is native to the eastern Pacific. Etymology T ...

'' ( Starks, 1896) (scalyhead sculpin) * '' Artedius lateralis'' (Girard, 1854) (smoothhead sculpin) * ''

Artedius notospilotus ''Artedius notospilotus'', or the bonehead sculpin, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Cottidae, the typical sculpins. Commonly found in the intertidal zone to depths of 170 feet, the species has a range extending fro ...

'' Girard, 1856 (bonehead sculpin)

Characteristics

''Artedius'' sculpins are similar to many other cottid genera. They share the following identifying characteristics. They do not posses any postcleithra in the pelvic girdle, they have 2 or 3 parallel scale rows in the axilla of the

pectoral fin Fins are distinctive anatomical features composed of bony spines or rays protruding from the body of a fish. They are covered with skin and joined together either in a webbed fashion, as seen in most bony fish, or similar to a flipper, as ...

s with no cirrhi above these. There is a triangular extension of the pterotic bone which extends onto the edge of the cranium, The chin are dark in colour broken by paler circular blotches and the dark flanks are broken by colourless circular blotches too. The largest species is the bonehead sculpin ('' A. notospilotus'') which has a maximum published

total length Fish measurement is the measuring of individual fish and various parts of their anatomies. These data are used in many areas of ichthyology, including taxonomy and fisheries biology. Overall length * Standard length (SL) is the length of a fish ...

of while the smallest is the scalyhead sculpin (''

'') which has a maximum published

of .

Distribution

Artedius sculpins are found in the eastern North Pacific Ocean from the Komandorski Islands, Russia aoth along the Pacific coast of North America to northern

Baja California Baja California (; 'Lower California'), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Baja California ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Baja California), is a state in Mexico. It is the northernmost and westernmost of the 32 federal entities of Mex ...

in Mexico.

References

* {{Taxonbar, from=Q145418 Cottinae Ray-finned fish genera