Moxostoma macrolepidotum
Taxonomic Hierarchy
Actinopterygii (Ray-finned Fishes)
Cypriniformes (Carps and Minnows)
Catostomidae (Suckers)
Moxostoma
Moxostoma macrolepidotum (Shorthead Redhorse)
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.
Distribution
North America: Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River, Hudson Bay and Mississippi River basins from Quebec to Alberta in Canada and south to northern Alabama and Oklahoma in the USA; Atlantic Slope drainages from Hudson River in New York to Santee River in South Carolina, USA.
Habitat Associations
Freshwater, brackish. demersal. Found in: streams, lakes.
Biology
Inhabit rocky pools, runs and riffles in small to large rivers. Also occur in lakes (Ref. 5723, 10294). Adults feed on benthic insect larvae; juveniles consume microcrustacea and midge larvae (Ref. 10294).
Max length: 75.0 cm TL; common length: 40.8 cm TL; max weight: 3990 g; max age: 9 years.
Reproductive mode: dioecism; fertilization: external; nonguarders (open water/substratum egg scatterers); parental care: none.
IUCN Red List Status: Least Concern (LC), assessed 2012-03-01. Resilience: Medium (tmax=9).
Commercial or Environmental Importance
Fisheries: subsistence fisheries; gamefish.
References
Page, L.M. and B.M. Burr (1991) A field guide to freshwater fishes of North America north of Mexico. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston. 432 p.
Balon, E.K. (1975) Reproductive guilds of fishes: a proposal and definition. J. Fish. Res. Board Can. 32(6):821-864.
Coker, G.A., C.B. Portt and C.K. Minns (2001) Morphological and ecological characteristics of Canadian freshwater fishes. Can. MS Rpt. Fish. Aquat. Sci. 2554:iv+89p.
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