Ptychocheilus grandis
Sacramento Pikeminnow
NS
G4
Taxonomic Hierarchy
Actinopterygii (Ray-finned Fishes)
Cypriniformes (Carps and Minnows)
Cyprinidae (Carps and Minnows)
Ptychocheilus
Ptychocheilus grandis (Sacramento Pikeminnow)
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. Dorsal fin usually with 8 rays; anal fin with 8 rays; 38-44 scales on back from head to dorsal fin; 65-78, usually 67-75, scales on lateral line; and 12-15 scales above lateral line (Ref. 86798).
Distribution
North America: Sacramento-San Joaquin, Pajaro-Salinas, Russian, and Clear Lake drainages in California, USA. Introduced elsewhere in California, including Eel River and tributaries to Morro Bay.
Habitat Associations
Freshwater. demersal. Found in: streams.
Biology
Inhabits rocky and sandy pools and runs of small to large rivers. Usually found in clear, warm streams (Ref. 5723). Voracious minnow with pike-like habits. Small pikeminnows (less than or equal to 7 cm SL) are found in shallow water with cover and lower velocities. The microhabitat use of these juveniles is controlled by the presence of large pikeminnows which connotes intraspecific predation. The microhabitat shift is observed to be significantly influenced by the presence rather than the number of large pikeminnows in the area (Ref. 55069).
Max length: 140.0 cm TL; common length: 40.0 cm TL; max age: 9 years.
IUCN Red List Status: Least Concern (LC), assessed 2012-03-01. Resilience: Very low (Preliminary K or Fecundity.).
Commercial or Environmental Importance
Fisheries: minor commercial; 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.
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.
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