Iowa Fish Atlas

Chestnut lamprey-Ichthyomyzon castaneus

Native: Yes

State Rank: S2

ITIS Code: 159725          

National Rank:  N4

Global Rank: G4

Modeled By: Anna Loan-Wilsey

State Range:

The chestnust lamprey is a threatened species in Iowa (571 IAC 77.2(2) (2004)).  It can be found throughout much of the Mississippi River (Harlan et al. 1987).  A single pre-1900 collection in the Des Moines River (Meek 1892) is the only occurrence of this lamprey from Iowa’s interior waters.

Habitat Affinities:

The chestnut lamprey moves among different habitats through its life cycle.  Adults are common in large streams and reservoirs, where, as parasites, they can find an abundance of fishes on which to feed (Cross and Collins 1995; Etnier and Starnes, 1993; Pflieger 1997; Robison and Buchanan 1988).  Spawning adults can be found in medium creeks to large rivers, and larvae need clear streams with permanent flow, with stable bars of sand, silt, and organic matter (Pflieger 1997).  The chestnut lamprey’s variety of habitat is illustrated by the fact that Cross and Collins (1995) assert that it is found in large rivers, while Phillips et. al. (1982) state that it tends to occupy smaller rivers and streams.

Predictive Model(s):

Mississippi River Model:

The distribution is based upon existing collection records and professional review.

("pool" >= 'S08' AND "pool" <= 'S18')

Overall Prediction Model

("pool" >= 'S08' AND "pool" <= 'S18')

Literature Cited:

Cross, F.B., and J.T. Collins.  1995.  Fishes in Kansas.  University of Kansas Natural History Museum, Public Education Series No. 14, Lawrence, Kansas.   315 pp.

Endangered and threatened plant and animal species.  2004.  Iowa Administrative Code 

571: 77.2(2).

Etnier, D.A., and W.E. Starnes.  1993.  The fishes of Tennessee.  University of Tennessee Press, Knoxville, Tennessee.  681 pp.

Harlan, J.R., E.B. Speaker, and J. Mayhew.  1987.  Iowa fish and fishing. Iowa Conservation Commission, Des Moines, Iowa. 323pp.

Meek, S.E.  1892.  Report upon the fishes of Iowa, based upon observations and

collections mad during 1889, 1890, 1891.  Bulletin of the United States Fish Commission 10(1890):217-248.

Pflieger, W.L.  1997.  The fishes of Missouri.  Missouri Department of Conservation, Jefferson City, Missouri.  372 pp.

Phillips, G.L., W.D. Schmid, and J.C. Underhill.  1982.  Fishes of the Minnesota region.  University of Minnesota Press, Minneapolis, Minnesota.  248 pp.

Robison, H.W., and T.M. Buchanan. 1988.  Fishes of Arkansas.  University of Arkansas Press, Fayetteville, Arkansas.  536 pp.

Data Sources:

Cleary, R.E.  1956.  Summary of the cooperative exploratory fishing operations in the

Wisconsin-Illinois-Iowa sections of the Mississippi River- 1956.  Job Description Investigations Projects.  Iowa Conservation Commission, Des Moines, Iowa.

Guttenberg Fish Management.  2002.  Field notes and unpublished reports.  Northeast

Management District, Fisheries Bureau, Iowa Department of Natural Resources, Guttenberg, Iowa.

Iowa State University Museum.  1985.  Collection of fishes catalog, 1878-1985.   Iowa

State University, Ames, Iowa.

Long Term Resource Monitoring Program.  2002.   Pool 13 database, 1990-2001.  Upper

Midwest Environmental Science Center, Bellevue, Iowa.

Meek, S.E.  1892.  Report upon the fishes of Iowa, based upon observations and

collections mad during 1889, 1890, 1891.  Bulletin of the United States Fish Commission. 10(1890):217-248.

Nord, R.C.  1967.  A compendium of fishery information on the Upper Mississippi River.

Upper Mississippi River Conservation Committee, Rock Island, Illinois. 238 pp. 

UMRCC.  1953.  Revised species list- northern section of the river.  Pages 19-32 in

Proceedings of the Ninth Annual Meeting, Upper Mississippi River Conservation Committee, Rock Island, Illinois.

Additional References:

Becker, G.C.  1983.  Fishes of Wisconsin.  University of Wisconsin Press, Madison. 1052 pp.

Case, B.  1970.  Spawning behavior of the chestnut lamprey (Ichthyomyzon castaneus).  Journal of the Fisheries Research Board of Canada  27(10):1872-1874.

Clay, W.M.  1975.  The fishes of Kentucky.  Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources, Frankfort, Kentucky.  416 pp.

Cross, F.B.  1967.  Handbook of fishes of Kansas.  University of Kansas Museum of Natural History Miscellaneous Publication  No. 45, Lawrence, Kansas.  357 pp.

Douglas, N.H.  1974.  Freshwater fishes of Louisiana.  Claitor’s Publishing Division, Sponsored by Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Commission, Baton Rouge, Louisiana.  443 pp.

Eddy, S., and J.C. Underhill.  1974.  Northern fishes; with special reference to the upper Mississippi Valley.  University of Minnesota Press, Minneapolis, Minnesota.  414 pp.

Gelwicks, G.T.  1995.  Fish movement between the lower Missouri River and a managed floodplain wetland in Missouri.  Master’s thesis. University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri. 190 pp.

Hall, G.E., and G.A.  Moore.  1954.  Oklahoma lampreys: their characterization and distribution.  Copeia 1954(2):127-135.

Hall, J.D. 1963.  An ecological study of the chestnut lam-prey, Ichthyomyzon castaneus (Girard), in the Manistee River, Michigan.  Dissertation Abstract 24(2):901-902.

Hardisty, M.W., and I. C. Potter, editors. 1971. The biology of lampreys. Academic Press, London and New York. 65pp.

Kelly, G., editor.  1986.  Animal habitat relations handbook.  Missouri Department of Conservation and U.S.D.A. Forest Service, Jefferson City, Missouri.  293 pp.

Lanteigne, J.  1992.  Status of the chestnut lamprey, Ichthyomyzon castaneus, in Canada.  Canadian Field-Naturalist 106(2):14-18.

Lee, D.S., C.R. Gilbert, C.H. Hocutt, R.E. Jenkins, D.E. McAllister, and J.R. Stauffer, Jr.  1980.  Atlas of North American freshwater fishes.  North Carolina State Museum of Natural History, Raleigh, North Carolina.  867 pp.

Page, L.M., and B.M. Burr.  1991.  A field guide to freshwater fishes: North America north of Mexico.  Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, Massachusetts. 432 pp.

Pflieger, W.L.  1971.  A distributional study of Missouri fishes.  University of Kansas Publications, Museum of Natural History  20(3):225-570.

Pflieger, W.L.  1989a.  Aquatic community classification system for Missouri.  Missouri Department of Conservation.  Jefferson City, Missouri.  Aquatic Series No. 19. 70 pp. plus Supplement.

Pflieger, W.L.  1989b.  The stream resources of Missouri.  D-J Project - F-1-R-28.  Study S-20.  Missouri Department of Conservation, Columbia, Missouri.  

Renaud, C.B., and N. de Ville.  2000.  Three records of the chestnut lamprey, Ichthyomyzon castaneus, new to Quebec.  Canadian Field-Naturalist 114:333-335.

Renaud, C.B., S.C. Ribey, and F. Chapleau.  1996.  Four records of the chestnut lamprey, Ichthyomyzon castaneus, new to Ontario.  Candian Field-Naturalist 110:450-453.

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.  American Fisheries Society, Special Publication 20, Bethesda, Maryland. 183 pp.

Scott, W.B., and E. J. Crossman.  1973.  Freshwater fishes of Canada.  Fisheries Research Board of Canada Bulletin No. 184, Ottawa, Canada.  966 pp.

Sheehan, R.J., W.M. Lewis, and  L.R. Bodensteiner.  1990.  Winter habitat requirements and overwintering of riverine fishes.  Southern Illinois Fisheries Research Laboratory, Carbondale, Illinois.  D-J Project F-79-R, Study 101.  234 pp.

Thom, R.H., and J.H. Wilson.  1980.  The natural divisions of Missouri.  Transactions of the Missouri Academy of Science  14:9-24.

Photo Credits:

Upper Left:       Photo courtesy of Konrad P. Schmidt, copyright Konrad P. Schmidt.

Upper Right:     Photo courtesy of William L. Pflieger, Missouri Department of Conservation.  http://www.conservation.state.mo.us