Tadpole Madtom Noturus gyrinus
This species was found at 46 bioassessment sites, 3 rapid fish bioassessment sites, 8 fisheries assessment sites, and 0 fisheries presence-only assessment sites. In total, it was collected at 56 distinct sites, or 3.7% of the 1522 total sites monitored by the bioassessment program. It is the 67th most commonly collected species.
The Tadpole Madtom was collected in 72 bioassessment sampling sessions and 9 fisheries assessment sessions. It was present in 3 rapid bioassessment sessions and 0 presence-only sessions.
The biological assessment program has collected a total of 226 individual Tadpole Madtom specimens, ranking it the #87 most collected fish.
Color varies from dark olive or brown to sometimes dark gray and light beneath. The head is large and fleshy and not flattened. The body is short and stout. It looks more like a bullhead than either of the other madtoms. There are 13 to 15, usually 14, rays in the anal fin. The premaxillary band is bar-shaped. There is a very narrow dark line along the side of the body. Upper and lower jaws are of equal length. This little fish rarely exceeds 3- or 4-inches long.
Photo by John Olson. Red Cedar WMA. Muscatine County, Iowa, 28 August 2018.
Photo by John Olson. Red Cedar WMA. Muscatine County, Iowa, 28 August 2018.
Collected at Stoney Creek- Ocheyedan WMA. Photo Credit: John Olson
HUC12 watersheds where this species has been found