Ictiobus cyprinellus (Valenciennes, 1844)
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
The bigmouth buffalo (Ictiobus cyprinellus) is a fish native to North America that is in decline. It is the largest North American species in the Catostomidae or "sucker" family, and is one of the longest-lived and latest-maturing freshwater fishes, capable of living 148 years and reproducing infrequently. Even at a century old they show no age-related declines, but instead improvements relative to younger individuals, making this species a biological marvel. It is commonly called the marblehead, redmouth buffalo, buffalofish, bernard buffalo, or roundhead. The bigmouth buffalo is not a carp, nor is any other fish in the sucker family. Although they share the same order, each belong to different suborders and are native to separate continents. The bigmouth buffalo is typically a brownish olive color with dusky fins, but can vary greatly in color across individuals including melanistic, golden, and even xanthic color morphs. Bigmouth buffalo may also accrue unique black or orange pigmentation markings with age, and in some rare individuals, white-edged fins.
Wikipedia contributors, Bigmouth buffalo; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T22:54:05.763810+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Ictiobus cyprinellus (Valenciennes, 1844)
- Name authority
- (Valenciennes, 1844)
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Teleostei
- Order
- Cypriniformes
- Family
- Catostomidae
- Genus
- Ictiobus
- Extinction status
- Not supplied by this source
Source habitat flags: Marine: no · Freshwater: yes · Terrestrial: no. These do not form a complete habitat description.
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- gigaclassActinopterygii
- superclassActinopteri
- classTeleostei
- orderCypriniformes
- familyCatostomidae Agassiz, 1850
- subfamilyIctiobinae Bleeker, 1863
- genusIctiobus Rafinesque, 1820
- speciesIctiobus cyprinellus (Valenciennes, 1844)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Ictiobus. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Fleshylip BuffaloIctiobus labiosus (Meek, 1904) | CatostomidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Southern BuffaloIctiobus meridionalis (Günther, 1868) | CatostomidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Ictiobus niger (Rafinesque, 1819) | CatostomidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Ictiobus bubalus (Rafinesque, 1818) | CatostomidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Sclerognathus cyprinella Valenciennes, 1844 Valenciennes, 1844 | synonym |
| Ictiobus cyprinella (Valenciennes, 1844) (Valenciennes, 1844) | synonym |
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=1044802 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:3PBC6. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.