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Myoxocephalus quadricornis (Linnaeus, 1758)

Fourhorn sculpin
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Native range | All suitable habitat | Point map | Year 2050
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Myoxocephalus quadricornis   AquaMaps   Data sources: GBIF OBIS
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Image of Myoxocephalus quadricornis (Fourhorn sculpin)
Myoxocephalus quadricornis
Picture by Bull. U.S. Bur. Fish.

Classification / Names Common names | Synonyms | Catalog of Fishes(genus, species) | ITIS | CoL | WoRMS | Cloffa

Teleostei (teleosts) > Perciformes/Cottoidei (Sculpins) > Cottidae (Sculpins)
Etymology: Myoxocephalus: Greek, myos = muscle, and also, mouse + Greek, kephale = head (Ref. 45335).
More on author: Linnaeus.

Issue
Some authors use the genus Triglopsis for this species. See the list of references in Eschmeyer (CofF ver. Sep. 2011: Ref. 88002). More studies are needed.

Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range Ecology

Marine; freshwater; brackish; demersal; depth range 0 - 100 m (Ref. 58496). Polar; 83°N - 41°N, 180°W - 180°E

Distribution Countries | FAO areas | Ecosystems | Occurrences | Point map | Introductions | Faunafri

Atlantic and Arctic: Baltic coast of Sweden, Finland, Russia and southwestern to eastern Poland; western coast of Sweden to northern coast of Norway, eastward to White and Barents Sea basins. In Siberia eastward to about Anadyr estuary. Landlocked populations in Sweden, central Finland and Karelia (Ref. 59043). Arctic drainages of North America (Ref. 5723).

Length at first maturity / Size / Weight / Age

Maturity: Lm ?  range ? - ? cm
Max length : 60.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 2058); common length : 30.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 2058); max. published weight: 260.00 g (Ref. 27547); max. reported age: 14 years (Ref. 12193)

Short description Identification keys | Morphology | Morphometrics

Dorsal spines (total): 7 - 9; Dorsal soft rays (total): 13 - 16; Anal spines: 0; Anal soft rays: 13 - 17; Vertebrae: 37 - 42. Identified by the four bony protuberances on the top of the head (the protuberances are smaller in females and young and absent in the freshwater form), the chainlike lateral line, the sharp spines on the preoperculum, and the absence of palatine teeth (Ref. 27547). Gill rakers reduced to rounded, spiny protuberances (Ref. 27547). Soft dorsal often much enlarged in adult males; caudal truncate to slightly rounded (Ref. 27547). Young gray above, with three or four dark saddles below dorsal fins and a dark spot on dorsal side of caudal peduncle; adults are darker; spiny dorsal fin dusted with black; soft dorsal, anal, pectoral and caudal fins have dark bars; pelvic fins pale (Ref. 27547).

Biology     Glossary (e.g. epibenthic)

Occurs in cold brackish and moderately saline water near the coast (Ref. 27547). Enters coastal rivers and may occur as far as 120 miles inland (Ref. 5723). Landlocked in lakes (Ref. 59043). Maximum depth reported at 100m (Ref. 35388). Benthic (Ref. 58426). Movements are limited to short onshore-offshore seasonal movements and mass movements of fry into shallow water in autumn (Ref. 28908, 28910). Moreover, there are no migrations of large numbers; movement into freshwater and long distances up rivers are apparently undertaken by relatively few individuals at a time (Ref. 27547). Diurnal from November to April but is largely nocturnal the rest of the year (Ref. 28905). Feeds on small crustaceans, fishes (Ref. 4968) and molluscs (Ref. 58426). Spawning takes place in shallow waters, male digs a groove in the gravel where pairing and egg laying occur. Move to deeper water in the spring, where they stay in summer (Ref. 35388). Landlocked populations are locally threatened (Ref. 59043).

Life cycle and mating behavior Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae

Males become territorial and aggressive toward other males with the approach of the spawning season. Two or three days prior to spawning, the females become restless and swim about between short periods of rest. When a female swims over a male, he undulates his body from side to side and raises his spiny dorsal fin, If the female comes to rest near the male, he moves close to her in a series of short darts. Both then fan rhythymically with their pectoral fins, making a hole. The pair lie side by side, with the male's caudal fin twisted under that of the female. The male make rhythmic motions toward the female with his tail, and the motions apparently stimulate her to release her eggs (Ref. 28900, 28901). After spawning the female leaves the nest; the eggs are fanned and guarded by the male until hatching which occurs in the spring (Ref. 27547).

Main reference Upload your references | References | Coordinator | Collaborators

Robins, C.R., R.M. Bailey, C.E. Bond, J.R. Brooker, E.A. Lachner, R.N. Lea and W.B. Scott, 1991. Common and scientific names of fishes from the United States and Canada. Am. Fish. Soc. Spec. Publ. (20):183 p. (Ref. 3814)

IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435: Version 2024-2)

  Least Concern (LC) ; Date assessed: 07 February 2023

CITES

Not Evaluated

CMS (Ref. 116361)

Not Evaluated

Threat to humans

  Harmless





Human uses

Fisheries: subsistence fisheries
FAO - Publication: search | FishSource | Sea Around Us

More information

Trophic ecology
Food items
Diet composition
Food consumption
Food rations
Predators
Ecology
Ecology
Population dynamics
Growth parameters
Max. ages / sizes
Length-weight rel.
Length-length rel.
Length-frequencies
Mass conversion
Recruitment
Abundance
Life cycle
Reproduction
Maturity
Maturity/Gills rel.
Fecundity
Spawning
Spawning aggregations
Eggs
Egg development
Larvae
Larval dynamics
Distribution
Countries
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Anatomy
Gill area
Brain
Otolith
Physiology
Body composition
Nutrients
Oxygen consumption
Swimming type
Swimming speed
Visual pigments
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Diseases & Parasites
Toxicity (LC50s)
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Genetics
Heterozygosity
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Internet sources

AFORO (otoliths) | Aquatic Commons | BHL | Cloffa | BOLDSystems | Websites from users | Check FishWatcher | CISTI | Catalog of Fishes: genus, species | DiscoverLife | ECOTOX | FAO - Publication: search | Faunafri | Fishipedia | Fishtrace | GenBank: genome, nucleotide | GloBI | Google Books | Google Scholar | Google | IGFA World Record | MitoFish | National databases | Otolith Atlas of Taiwan Fishes | PubMed | Reef Life Survey | Socotra Atlas | Tree of Life | Wikipedia: Go, Search | World Records Freshwater Fishing | Zoological Record

Estimates based on models

Preferred temperature (Ref. 123201): -1.8 - 4.3, mean -1 °C (based on 6042 cells).
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref. 82804):  PD50 = 0.5000   [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.00724 (0.00580 - 0.00905), b=3.14 (3.08 - 3.20), in cm total length, based on LWR estimates for this species (Ref. 93245).
Trophic level (Ref. 69278):  3.9   ±0.62 se; based on food items.
Resilience (Ref. 120179):  Low, minimum population doubling time 4.5 - 14 years (tm=3-5; tmax=14; Fec=792).
Fishing Vulnerability (Ref. 59153):  Moderate vulnerability (44 of 100).
Price category (Ref. 80766):   Low.
Nutrients (Ref. 124155):  Calcium = 73.6 [14.2, 243.1] mg/100g; Iron = 0.358 [0.135, 1.153] mg/100g; Protein = 18.6 [15.8, 20.9] %; Omega3 = 0.493 [0.205, 1.367] g/100g; Selenium = 13.3 [5.5, 31.9] μg/100g; VitaminA = 9.77 [2.06, 48.14] μg/100g; Zinc = 0.784 [0.313, 1.423] mg/100g (wet weight);