Iowa Fish
What
is a fish? Fish are animals that live their lives in water. Fish are
cold-blooded, which does not mean that their blood is cold but rather that
their body temperature changes with the temperature of the water around them.
Fish are also vertebrates - they have a backbone and an internal skeleton made
of cartilage or bone.
Since
fish are animals they must breathe oxygen just like other animals - but how do
they breathe oxygen under water? With their gills! Gills make it possible for
fish to breathe oxygen under water by absorbing the dissolved oxygen in water.
Fish
also have fins and scales. Fins are how fish move around in the water.
Different fish have different fin shapes and sizes. Scales cover fish and
protect them. Most fish have scales but some, like catfish, are covered with
tough skin.
There
are 148 species of fish in Iowa.
Creature
Feature – Tadpole Madtom (Noturus
gyrinus)
Tadpole
madtoms are a relatively unknown Iowa catfish species. Tadpole madtoms are
small, rarely exceed 3 to 4 inches long as adults. Like all catfish species
they have eight characteristic barbells, or “whiskers” around their mouth. They
also lack scales like other catfish species but rather have a tough skin
covering their bodies.
Tadpole
madtoms vary in color from dark olive or brown to dark gray with a light
underside. Their body is short and stout and their heads are large and fleshy.
As with other madtoms, they have a poison gland at the base of their pectoral
fins (side fins usually located behind or slightly below the gills) that causes
a burning sensation if you are pricked with them. It is this poison gland
feature of their anatomy that gives them the name “madtom” which “maddens”
predators that try to eat them. “Tom” is another name for a cat. The “tadpole”
aspect of their names comes from their slight resemblance to tadpoles due to
their small size and the shape of their tail.
Tadpole
madtoms are widely distributed across Iowa. They are found in marshes,
slow-moving rivers, oxbows, lakes, and ponds. They prefer turbid water with a
soft mud, sand, or gravel bottom and thick vegetation to hide in. Tadpole
madtoms eat insects, aquatic insect larva, algae, and aquatic plants. They are
most active at night.
Tadpole
madtoms usually spawn in June or July once the water temperature has reached
80° F. Females lay eggs on rocks, logs, and underwater vegetation. They have
also been known to lay their eggs on submerged garbage such as pop cans. The
males guard the eggs until they hatch. Tadpole madtoms rarely live past 3
years.
Book List
|
Amdahl,
P. 2000. The Barefoot Fisherman: A Fishing Book for Kids. Clearwater
Publishing.
|
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Arnosky,
J. 1993. Crinkleroot's Twenty-five Fish Every Child Should Know. Simon
& Schuster Children's Publishing.
|
|
Bryan,
J. et al. 2007. Take Me Fishing: 50 Great Writers on Their Favorite Sport.
Skyhorse Publishing.
|
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Burger,
C. 1960. All About Fish. Random House.
|
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Cook,
B. 2005. The Little Fish that Got Away. HarperCollins.
|
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Gallimard,
J. 1998. Fish. Scholastic.
|
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Heinrichs,
A.R. 2003. Fish. Coughlan Publishing.
|
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Klein,
A. G. 2008. Fishing. ABDO Publishing Company.
|
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Long,
E. 1987. Gone Fishing. Houghton Mifflin.
|
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Parker,
S. 2005. Fish. DK Publishing, Inc.
|
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Pastel,
J., K. Fitzsimmons and L. VanDeWeghe. Bur Bur's Fishing Adventure: An
Exciting Fishing Adventure. IGI Press.
|
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Pfeffer,
W. 1996. What's it Like to be a Fish? (Let's Read-and-Find-Out Science 1).
Harper Trophy.
|
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Prosek,
J. 2004. A Good Day’s Fishing. Simon and Schuster Children’s
Publishing.
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Quigley,
M. 2007. Granddad’s Fishing Buddy. Dial.
|
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Schaefer,
L.M. 2001. What Is a Fish?. Coughlan Publishing.
|
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Sill,
C. 2005. About Fish: A Guide for Children. Peachtree Publishers.
|
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Wells,
E. 2006. Wishing I was Fishing. Beaver’s Pond Press.
|
Links
IDNR:
Fishes of Iowa
Tadpole Madtom
USGS: Noturus gyrinus – Tadpole Madtom
Wikipedia: Tadpole Madtom
For
factsheets, activity sheets and MORE visit:
IDNR: Education – Classroom
Resources (go to the Document Library at the bottom of the page for fact sheets
and activity sheets!)
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