Zootaxa 4543 (2): 221–240 ISSN 1175-5326 (print edition) https://www.mapress.com/j/zt/ Article ZOOTAXA Copyright © 2019 Magnolia Press ISSN 1175-5334 (online edition) https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.4543.2.3 http://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:0D3BBCE4-B836-417F-A293-6A93D155A0C7 A reappraisal of the California Roach/Hitch (Cypriniformes, Cyprinidae, Hesperoleucus/Lavinia) species complex JASON BAUMSTEIGER1,2,4 & PETER B. MOYLE1,3,5 1Center for Watershed Sciences, University of California, Davis, One Shields Avenue, Davis, CA 95616 2Department of Animal Sciences, University of California, Davis, One Shields Avenue, Davis, CA 95616 3Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Conservation Biology, University of California, Davis, One Shields Avenue, Davis, CA 95616 4Current address: Department of Biological Sciences, University of the Pacific, 3601 Pacific Ave, Stockton, CA 95211 5Corresponding Author. E-mail:
[email protected];
[email protected] Abstract The California Roach (Hesperoleucus symmetricus) and Hitch (Lavinia exilicauda) form a species complex largely en- demic to California (CA), USA. Using previous studies of this complex along with a recent comprehensive genomic anal- ysis, we developed a highly supported taxonomic hierarchy of two genera, five species, four subspecies and multiple distinct population segments within two presently recognized species. The genera Lavinia and Hesperoleucus are support- ed as representing distinct lineages, despite occasional hybridization between them. While hybridization is one pathway to some speciation in this complex, hierarchical levels correlate nicely between genomic results and earlier morphological work. Hesperoleucus symmetricus is newly divided into four species (H. parvipinnis—Gualala Roach, H. mitrulus— Northern Roach, H. venustus—Coastal Roach, and H.