Cottus immaculatus
No common name
NS
G4
Collection Details
Specimens
Photos
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Records
Taxonomic Hierarchy
Actinopterygii (Ray-finned Fishes)
Scorpaeniformes (Lionfish, Stonefish and others)
Cottidae (Sculpins)
Cottus
Cottus immaculatus
Description
This species account was compiled from
FishBase (Froese, R. and D. Pauly. Editors. 2025. FishBase. World Wide Web electronic publication. www.fishbase.org, version 04/2025.)
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Characters
Body shape: Elongated. Distinguished from all other congeners, except Cottus hypselurus and Cottus caeruleomentum, by the blue chin and belly on spawning males. Differs from Cottus hypselurus by dorsal fin spines 8-9 (versus 6-7); pectoral fin rays 16-17 (versus 13-15); pigmentation of the ventral surface of the peritoneum weak (versus moderate to strong ); dorsal-fin union moderate to wide versus slight to moderate. Can be differentiated from Cottus caeruleomentum by caudal base band notched (versus non-notched); dorsal fins moderately to widely connected (versus slightly connected); pectoral fin rays 16-17 (versus 12-15); ventral surface of peritoneum weakly pigmented (versus moderately to strongly pigmented) (Ref. 83416).
Distribution
North America: USA (Current, Eleven Point, Spring and White river systems of the White River drainage in the Ozark Highlands of Missouri and Arkansas).
Habitat Associations
Freshwater. benthopelagic.
Biology
Found in cool to cold spring-fed creeks and rivers with cobble bottoms (Ref. 83416).
Max length: 9.0 cm SL.
IUCN Red List Status: Least Concern (LC), assessed 2012-08-05. Resilience: Medium (Preliminary K or Fecundity.).
Commercial or Environmental Importance
Fisheries: of no interest.
References
Kinziger, A.P. and R.M. Wood (2010) Cottus immaculatus, a new species of sculpin (Cottidae) from the Ozark Highlands of Arkansas and Missouri, USA. Zootaxa 2340:50-64.
Comments On Cottus immaculatus