Species: Catostomus sp. 4
Salish Sucker
Species
Encyclopedia of Puget Sound
Classification
Kingdom
Animalia
Phylum
Craniata
Class
Actinopterygii
Order
Cypriniformes
Family
Catostomidae
Genus
Catostomus
NatureServe
Classification
Other Global Common Names
meunier de Salish
Informal Taxonomy
Animals, Vertebrates - Fishes - Bony Fishes - Suckers
Formal Taxonomy
Animalia - Craniata - Actinopterygii - Cypriniformes - Catostomidae - Catostomus - .
Ecology and Life History
Short General Description
A fish (sucker).
Habitat Type Description
Freshwater
Migration
true - true - false - In Pepin Brook, British Columbia, radio-tracked individuals used 42-307 m of linear channel and areas of 212-1,704 sq m (95% home range size); 100% home range size ranged up to 497 m and 7,008 sq m (Pearson and Healey 2003).
Non-migrant
true
Locally Migrant
true
Food Comments
The diet of adults appears to consist largely of chironomid midge larvae; the diet of the young is unknown (McPhail 1987). Overall, the diet likely includes various invertebrates such as aquatic insect larvae, crustaceans, mollusks (primarily snails), worms, and occasionally fish eggs (Wydoski and Whitney 2003).
Reproduction Comments
Spawning in British Columbia was observed from early April through mid-June or early July (Pearson and Healey 2003). Wydoski and Whitney (2003) stated that spawning in British Columbia occurs in March or April when water temepratures reach 45-46 F and that some individuals in spawning condition have been caught through late August, when water temperatures were 68 F or higher. In Washington, spawning has been observed as early as early March. Individuals first spawn at the end of their second year (McPhail 1987). Life span is only 4-5 years in British Columbia (McPhail 1987, Inglis et al. 1992), but older individuals are known from Washington (McPhail 1987).
Ecology Comments
In British Columbia, the species typically co-occurs with juvenile coho salmon (<i>Oncorhynchus kisutch</i>), cutthroat trout <i>(O. clarki</i>) and prickly sculpin (<i>Cottus asper</i>). All of these species are capable of being significant predators of young Salish suckers (McPhail 1987).
Length
20
Conservation Status
NatureServe Global Status Rank
G1
Global Status Last Reviewed
2011-06-22
Global Status Last Changed
1996-09-19
Distribution
Conservation Status Map
<img src="http://www.natureserve.org/explorer/servlet/GetMapGif?CA.BC=S1&US.WA=S1" alt="Conservation Status Map" style="width: 475px; height: auto;" />
Global Range
This sucker is known from several river systems in the Fraser Valley of British Columbia and in the Puget Sound lowlands of Washington (Wydoski and Whitney 2003). Current information suggests that approximately 25% of the global range and 70% of all populations are in Canada (Recovery Team for Salish Sucker 2010). <br><br>In Canada, the Salish sucker has been observed in eleven watersheds: (1) Little Campbell River (extirpated), (2) Salmon River, (3) Bertrand Creek, (4) Pepin Brook, (5) Fishtrap Creek, (6) Salwein Creek/Hopedale Slough, (7) Atchelitz/Chilliwack/Semmihault creeks, (8) Elk Creek/Hope Slough, (9) Mountain Slough, (10) Agassiz Slough, and (11) Miami Creek (Recvoery Team for Salish Sucker 2010).<br><br>In Washington, the range includes three lakes and a slough draining into Puget Sound, and the Skagit, Nooksack, and Green River drainages (COSEWIC 2002); specifically, Whatcom Lake, the Skagit River system (including the Sauk and Suiattle rivers, the Stillaguamish River system (including Twin, Chitwood, and Trout lakes), Deep Creek (a tributary of the Snohomish River system), the Green River system, and Lake Cushman (a part of the Skokomish River system (Hallock, pers. comm., 2000, cited by Wydoski and Whitney 2003).