Exoglossum maxillingua
Cutlip Minnow
NS
G5
Collection Details
Specimens
Photos
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Records
Taxonomic Hierarchy
Actinopterygii (Ray-finned Fishes)
Cypriniformes (Carps and Minnows)
Cyprinidae (Carps and Minnows)
Exoglossum
Exoglossum maxillingua (Cutlip Minnow)
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: fusiform / normal. Exoglossum maxillingua resembles tonguetied minnow, E. laurae, but can be distinguished by the presence of much larger fleshy lobe on each side of lower jaw, well separated from central bony plate and followed by another fleshy lobe on underside of head, and by absence of barbel near corner of mouth (Ref. 86798).
Distribution
North America: Atlantic Slope from St. Lawrence River drainage in Quebec, Canada to upper Roanoke River in North Carolina, USA (absent in most of New England; present in Connecticut River, Vermont based on single record); Lake Ontario drainage in Ontario, Canada and New York, USA. Also present in upper New River drainage in West Virginia and Virginia, USA where may be based on introduction.
Habitat Associations
Freshwater. demersal. Found in: streams.
Biology
Inhabits rocky pools and runs of creeks and small to medium rivers. Usually found in quiet water near boulders. Males construct large circular or rectangular nests by piling pebbles carried in the mouth (Ref. 5723, 86798). Feeds on insects and mollusks (Ref. 54729).
Max length: 16.0 cm TL; common length: 10.8 cm TL; max age: 2 years.
IUCN Red List Status: Least Concern (LC), assessed 2012-01-27. Resilience: High (tmax=2).
References
Vadas, Robert L. (1990) The importance of omnivory and predator regulation of prey in freshwater fish assemblages of North America. Environ. Biol. Fishes 27(4):285-302.
Page, L.M. and B.M. Burr (2011) A field guide to freshwater fishes of North America north of Mexico. Boston : Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 663p.
Comments On Exoglossum maxillingua