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Noturus miurus Jordan, 1877

Image contributors to this species:

Matt Wagner (4) Lawrence Kent (3)

ScotCat Sources:

Other Sources:

Relevant Information:

Habitat: Inhabits riffles, pools below riffles and runs over gravel and sand mixed with sticks and leaves in creeks and small rivers. Also found in lakes. Inhabits mainstream rivers of small to medium size and the lower reaches of their major tributaries. Most commonly associated with moderate velocities, moderate depth (about 60 cm), clean sand or clay substrata and cover in the form of leaf packs, brush and log jams. Aquarium Care: The Madtoms are well suited to aquarium life. Provide river gravel and smooth rounded stones for hiding places during the day. A power filter at one end of the tank will provide the conditions of a flowing stream for these catfish. Can be housed with other North American fishes such as minnows, darters and shiners. Diet: Feeds on dipteran larvae (midges and blackflies), mayflies (Potamanthus and Stenonema), and hydropsychid caddisflies (Cheumatopsyche). In the aquarium they like most meaty food, such as cut-up earth worms, frozen blood worm and prawns. They will also take tablet and pellet foods. A varied diet will keep them in optimum health. Etymology: The specific name miurus: miurus meaning curtailed, probably referring to the short appearance of this fish (Noturus).

Common Name:

Brindled madtom, Frecklebely Madtom

Synonyms:

None

Family:

Ictaluridae

Distribution:

North America: lower Great Lakes drainages in Ontario, Canada and New York, USA southwest through most of Ohio River basin and lower Mississippi River basin (west to east Kansas and Oklahoma); Mohawk River in New York; Pearl River and Lake Pontchartrain drainages in Mississippi and Louisiana, USA. Type locality: Maumee River basin, lower Wabash River basin and White River near Indianapolis, Indiana [restricted to White River near Indianapolis, by lectotype designation].

Size:

11.5cm. (4½ins)

Temp:

16-23°C (59-73°F)

p.H.

6.5-7.0.

IUCN Red List

Listed as Least Concern in view of the large extent of occurrence, large number of subpopulations, large population size, and lack of major threats. Trend over the past 10 years or three generations is uncertain but likely relatively stable, or the species may be declining but not fast enough to qualify for any of the threatened categories under Criterion A (reduction in population size), (needs updating IUCN 2013).

Reference:

Ferraris, C.J. Jr., 2007. Checklist of catfishes, recent and fossil (Osteichthyes: Siluriformes), and catalogue of siluriform primary types. Zootaxa 1418:1-628.
Froese, R. and D. Pauly. Editors. 2016. FishBase. World Wide Web electronic publication. www.fishbase.org, ( 06/2016 ).
NatureServe. 2013. Noturus miurus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2013.
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.

Family: Ictaluridae Back to Ident-A-Cat Click on Thumbnails

Noturus miurus

Noturus miurus
Dorsal view

Noturus miurus

Noturus miurus
Dorsal view

Noturus miurus
From the Strong River Mississippi

Noturus miurus
Male-From the Strong River Mississippi

Noturus miurus
Juvenile-from the Homochito River, Mississippi

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