Taxonomy Of Fishes Research Articles (Page 5)

Notes on the Taxonomy and Distribution of Certain Zoarcid Fishes in the Northeastern Pacific

New and previously published records are listed for 28 species of freshwater fishes in tributaries of the Mackenzie River in northern British Columbia. Distribution patterns are discussed for all species reaching the continental divide at the Peace River headwaters; some are restricted to one or other side, but 17 species are common to the Peace and Fraser Rivers, suggesting that mountain ranges have served as a check but not an insurmountable obstacle to postglacial expansion. Five species indigenous to the Pacific slope—Catostomus macrocheilus, Richardsonius balteatus, Ptychocheilus oregonense, Mylocheilus caurinum, and Cottus asper—have evidently penetrated to the Peace River in comparatively recent times. Three species—the flathead chub Platygobio gracilis, the trout-perch Percopsis omiscomaycus, and the spoon-head sculpin Cottus ricei—have not previously been recorded from the province. Evidence is presented that subspecific distinctions are invalid in Couesius plumbeus (Agassiz) and Lota lota (Linnaeus). Coregonus coulieri and Hybognathus hankinsoni are reported for the first time from the Mackenzie drainage.

THE PROBLEM of poisonous fishes has been consistently neglected by ichthyologists and public health workers. With the expansion and development of shore fisheries in the tropical Pacific, poisonous fishes will become increasingly significant. The problem at this time is primarily an epidemiological one. A toxic species in one region may be commercially valuable in another-a situation which has resulted in considerable confusion. Concise knowledge of the taxonomy and biology of poisonous fishes is requisite if future studies regarding the physical and pharmacological properties of the toxins are to be of practical significance. The economic and military significance of such fishes is well established and the need for basic research is incontestable.