Fishes
Media
Species Types
Scientific Name
Forbesichthys agassizi
Description
The spring cavefish is the only cavefish in our state that has eyes, however small, and whose body is yellowish brown or brown; our other cavefishes lack eyes entirely and are pale and nearly colorless.
Media
Species Types
Scientific Name
Cottus specus
Description
The grotto sculpin is a rare fish adapted cave conditions. It has recently been designated an endangered species under the Federal Endangered Species Act. It's found only in Perry County, Missouri.
Media
Species Types
Scientific Name
Amblyopsis rosae
Description
The Ozark cavefish is small, colorless, and blind. It lives only in springs, cave streams, and underground waters. It has been declared Endangered in our state and as Threatened by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
Media
Species Types
Scientific Name
Aphredoderus sayanus
Description
The pirate perch is a small, grayish fish that is heavily speckled with black, with only one dorsal fin. It occurs in Missouri's southeastern lowlands, nearby parts of the Ozarks, and in a few locations along the Mississippi River.
Media
Species Types
Scientific Name
Campostoma anomalum (syn. C. pullum)
Description
The central stoneroller is a brownish minnow with small eyes. The lower jaw has a flat, shelflike extension used to scrape algae from rocks. Found statewide, it is most active during the daytime.
Media
Species Types
Scientific Name
Ichthyomyzon fossor
Description
The northern brook lamprey is a great example of a nonparasitic lamprey. While lampreys as a group are famous for being fish parasites, brook lampreys are essentially bottom feeders.
Media
Species Types
Scientific Name
Ichthyomyzon castaneus
Description
The chestnut lamprey is an eel-like fish that many people find interesting because it's a vampire to other fish. Adults have a well-developed, rasplike oral disc, seven porelike gill openings, no paired fins, and a single nostril.
Media
Species Types
Scientific Name
Anguilla rostrata
Description
The American eel is considered an uncommon catch by Missouri sport anglers. This species is known to take natural baits and rarely takes artificial baits.
Media
Species Types
Scientific Name
Etheostoma caeruleum
Description
The rainbow darter is a common and characteristic darter in the Ozarks. Where it occurs in our state, it is the most abundant darter in most streams of all sizes. Breeding males are brilliantly colored with reddish orange red and greenish blue.
Media
Species Types
Scientific Name
Gambusia affinis
Description
Mosquitofish resemble plain-looking guppies and, like guppies, bear live young instead of eggs. They prefer shallow, marginal areas and sluggish streams with warm water and abundant vegetative cover. They swim near the surface.
See Also
Media
Species Types
Scientific Name
Amphiuma tridactylum
Description
The three-toed amphiuma is an eel-like, completely aquatic salamander. It has very small forelimbs and hind limbs, each with three tiny toes. In Missouri it’s found only in the Bootheel region.
Media
Species Types
Scientific Name
Siren intermedia nettingi
Description
The western lesser siren is an eel-like, aquatic salamander with external gills, small eyes, small forelimbs with four toes, and no hind limbs. In Missouri, it’s found mostly in the Bootheel and northward in counties near the Mississippi River.
About Fishes in Missouri
Missouri has more than 200 kinds of fish, more than are found in most neighboring states. Fishes live in water, breathe with gills, and have fins instead of legs. Most are covered with scales. Most fish in Missouri “look” like fish and could never be confused with anything else. True, lampreys and eels have snakelike bodies — but they also have fins and smooth, slimy skin, which snakes do not.