Untitled - Alaska Resources Library

Order Gasterosteiformes
Family Aulorhynchidae — Tubesnouts
Aulorhynchus flavidus Gill, 1861. Tubesnout. To 18.8 cm (7.4 in) TL (Coad 1995). Pavlof Bay, southwest Alaska
Peninsula and Kodiak Island, Gulf of Alaska to Punta Rocosa, central Baja California (Mecklenburg et al.
2002). Record from Captains Bay, Unalaska Island, is uncertain (Mecklenburg et al. 2002). Near surface
to 30 m (100 ft; Eschmeyer and Herald 1983), from shoreline (e.g., beach seine in less than 1 m of water;
Mecklenburg et al. 2002) to well offshore (Eschmeyer and Herald 1983).
Family Gasterosteidae — Sticklebacks
Gasterosteus aculeatus Linnaeus, 1758. Threespine Stickleback. To 10.2 cm (4.0 in) TL. North Atlantic, arctic
Europe and Asia, and North Pacific; Korean Peninsula to Seas of Japan and Okhotsk to Bering, Chukchi,
and Beaufort seas, and Gulf of Alaska to Monterey Bay, central California. In fresh water as far south as
Rio Rosario, northern Baja California. Anadromous and resident freshwater forms; shallow vegetated
areas, including marshes, to depth of about 27 m (90 ft), recorded near surface as far as 805 km (500 mi)
offshore. All in Mecklenburg et al. (2002) after McPhail and Lindsey (1970), Morrow (1980), Eschmeyer
and Herald (1983), Page and Burr (1991), Coad (1995), and others. See Moyle (2002) for a complete
discussion of this species in California.
Pungitius pungitius (Linnaeus, 1758). Ninespine Stickleback. To 9 cm (3.5 in) TL. Circumboreal; Korea to
Seas of Japan and Okhotsk to Bering, Chukchi, and Beaufort seas, and western and northern Gulf of
Alaska coasts inland to northeastern British Columbia. Anadromous and resident freshwater forms;
marine populations most common in marshes and estuaries, also recorded to depth of 110 m (361 ft).
All in Mecklenburg et al. (2002) after Morrow (1980), Page and Burr (1991), Coad (1995), and others.
Family Syngnathidae — Pipefishes
Cosmocampus arctus (Jenkins & Evermann, 1889). Snubnose Pipefish. To 13 cm (5.1 in) TL (Allen and
Robertson 1994). Tomales Bay, northern California (Miller and Lea 1972) to Peru (Robertson and Allen
2002) and throughout Gulf of California (Miller and Lea 1972). Cosmocampus arctus coccineus has been
reported from Bahia Banderas, Mexico to Punta Aguja, Peru and Islas Galápagos (Grove and Lavenberg
1997). Cosmocampus arctus heraldi has been reported from Chile (Pequeño 1989). Intertidal and to
20 m (60 ft) or more (min.: Fritzsche 1980; max.: Allen and Robertson 1994).
Doryrhamphus excisus Kaup, 1856. Bluestripe Pipefish or Fantail Pipefish. To 7 cm (2.8 in) TL (Allen and
Robertson 1994). Pacific and Indian oceans; Japan (Senou in Nakabo 2002); Bahia Magdalena, southern
Baja California (Fritzche 1980) into Gulf of California (Thomson et al. 1979) and south to Ecuador,
including Islas Galápagos (Fritzsche 1980). At depths of 3–45 m (10–147 ft) (min.: Robertson and Allen
2002; max.: Allen and Robertson 1994). Also as Doryrhamphus melanopleura.
Hippocampus ingens Girard, 1858. Pacific Seahorse. To 30.5 cm (12 in) TL (Amezcua Linares 1996). Point
Conception, southern California (M. L., unpubl. data) to Chile (Pequeño 1989), including Gulf of
California and Islas Galápagos (Miller and Lea 1972); old (doubtful) record from San Francisco Bay
(Eschmeyer and Herald 1983). Usually offshore, surface (Fritzsche 1980) and 1–107 m (3–351 ft) (min.:
Robertson and Allen 2002; max.: Amezcua Linares 1996).
Syngnathus auliscus (Swain, 1882). Barred Pipefish. To 19 cm (7.5 in) TL (Allen and Robertson 1994). Santa
Barbara Channel, southern California (Fritzsche 1980) to Puerto Pizarro, Peru (Chirichigno and Vélez
1998), including Gulf of California (Fritzsche 1980). Intertidal (Allen 1999) and shallow inshore waters
(Eschmeyer and Herald 1983) to depth of 20 m (66 ft; Robertson and Allen 2002).
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