Field Guide

Fishes

Showing 1 - 10 of 41 results
Media
Brindled madtom side view photo with black background
Species Types
Scientific Name
Noturus miurus
Description
The brindled madtom inhabits many of the same lowland streams and ditches as the tadpole madtom, and is nearly as common. Brindled madtoms are more often found in pools, however. The species also inhabits the Spring River system in southwest Missouri.
Media
Black River madtom side view photo with black background
Species Types
Scientific Name
Noturus mayden
Description
The Black River madtom occurs only in the Black and St. Francis rivers of the Ozarks of southern Missouri and northern Arkansas. The back and fins are distinctly mottled with dark blotches and bars.
Media
Ozark madtom side view photo with black background
Species Types
Scientific Name
Noturus albater
Description
The Ozark madtom occurs only in the White River system of the Ozarks of southern Missouri and northern Arkansas. The back and fins are distinctly mottled with dark blotches and bars.
Media
Checkered madtom side view photo with black background
Species Types
Scientific Name
Noturus flavater
Description
The checkered madtom is a small catfish prominently marked with four dark saddle marks and a bold dark bar at the base of the tail fin. It occurs in the southern Ozarks.
Media
Freckled madtom side view photo with black background
Species Types
Scientific Name
Noturus nocturnus
Description
The freckled madtom looks similar to the tadpole madtom and shares much of its range, but its upper jaw projects beyond the lower jaw, and the underside of the head and body are sprinkled with dark speckles.
Media
Stonecat side view photo with black background
Species Types
Scientific Name
Noturus flavus
Description
The stonecat is the most common madtom in the large streams in the northern Ozarks and Prairie region. Its body and fins are nearly plain, its upper jaw projects beyond the lower jaw, and its lower lip and chin lack dark pigment.
Media
Orangethroat darter male in spawning colors, side view photo with black background
Species Types
Scientific Name
Etheostoma, Percina, Ammocrypta, and Crystallaria spp.
Description
Darters have been described as the hummingbirds of the fish world: colorful, small, and quick. Missouri has about 44 different types of darters. They are most diverse in the fast, clear, rocky streams of the Ozarks.
Media
Crystal darter side view photo with black background
Species Types
Scientific Name
Crystallaria asprella
Description
The crystal darter is Endangered in Missouri. Formerly known from many river drainages in the east-central and southeastern parts of our state, this pale, very slender darter apparently now lives only in the Gasconade and Black rivers.
Media
Greenside darter female, side view photo with black background
Species Types
Scientific Name
Etheostoma blennioides
Description
The greenside darter is one of our largest darters. It has olive to yellow sides and back with scattered red spots and vertical blotches often arranged in a V or W pattern. It is one of the most abundant and widespread darters in the Ozarks.
Media
Orangethroat darter female, side view photo with black background
Species Types
Scientific Name
Etheostoma spectabile
Description
Orangethroat darters are one of the most common darters in the Ozarks. The males are colorful during breeding season, with red blotches on the sides and bright orange under the gills.
See Also
Media
Photo of a three-toed amphiuma in an aquarium.
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
Photo of researcher holding a gilled siren
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.