Taxonomic Status of the Shorthead Redhorse, Moxostoma Aureolum (Lesueur) from the Kansas River Basin, Kansas' W
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.41 Taxonomic Status of the Shorthead Redhorse, Moxostoma aureolum (LeSueur) from the Kansas River Basin, Kansas' W. L. MINCKLEY and FRANK B. CROSS Moxostoma aureolum pisolabrum Trautman and Martin (1951, Occ. Papers Mus. Zoo!. Univ. Mich., 534:1-10) occurs in Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Arkansas, west of the Mississippi River and south of the Missouri River. The range is mainly Ozarkian, but extends westward onto the Plains in the Arkansas and Osage River systems. Moxostoma aureolum aureolum (LeSueur) occurs from Montana and eastern Wyoming eastward through northern Nebraska, Iowa, and Illinois, to New York State north of the Ohio River, and in Canada from the Northwest Territories to Quebec. Intergrades were reported by Trautman and Martin (1951:8 and Map 1) from streams in Missouri north of the Missouri River; the westernmost locality from which inter- grades are mapped is in the Chariton River. At the time M. a. pisolabrum was described, comparative material from northern Kansas was not available, but specimens from that area are now at the University of Kansas Museum of Natural History (KU), and the Kansas State University Museum (KSU). Examination of the following specimens is the basis for this paper. (those from Kansas are plotted in Figure 1): Kansas River Basin, Kansas KU 2954-15 spec., Mill Creek, Sec. 32, T. 12S, R. 11E, Wa- baunsee Co., 29 March, 1953; KU 2960-7 spec., Mill Creek, Sec. 30, T. 12S, R. 10E, Wabaunsee Co., 18 April, 1953; KU 3138-1 spec., Rock Creek, Douglas Co., Jan., 1954; KU 3230-7 spec., Mill Creek at Paxico, Wabaunsee Co., 20 June, 1953; KU 3236-11 spec., Wakarusa River, Sec. 14, T. 13S, R. 20E, Douglas Co., 28 March, 1952; KU 3757-1 spec., Mill Creek, Sec. 30, T. 12S, R. 10E, Wabaunsee Co., 4 May, 1957; KU 3806-1 spec., Little Blue River, Sec. 36, T. 1S, R. 4E, Washington Co., 31 July, 1957; KU 4176-4177-2 spec., Big Blue River, Sec. 18, T. 3S, R. 7E, Marshall Co., 28 May, 1958; KSU 2730-1 spec., "Manhattan", Riley Co., 188?; KSU 2731-1 of 2 spec., Big Blue River, Riley Co., 1886; and KSU 5068-1 spec., Mill Creek, Riley Co., 1954. Transactions of the Kansas Academy of Science, Vol. 63, No. 1, 1960. Although Hubbs and Lagler (Cranbrook Inst. Sci., Bull. 26, 1958 revision, p. 65) rejected aureolum as the specific name of the shorthead redhorse, we retain it pending more detailed explanation of the nomenclatural problem and its solution. [351 36 Transactions Kansas Academy of Science Figure 1. Localities in Kansas where specimens used in this study were obtained. Symbols: 0 = intergrades; • = M. a. pisolabrum. Moxostoma aureolum from Kansas River Basin M. a. pisolabrum (Kansas) KU 227-232-6 spec., Verdigris River, Montgomery Co., 25 July, 1911 (paratypes); KU 233-235-3 spec., Little Osage River, Bourbon Co., 24 June, 1911 (paratypes); KU 237-1 spec., Neosho River, Coffey Co., 27 June, 1912 (paratype); KU 238-239, 241-3 spec., Marais des Cygnes River, Linn Co., 20 June, 1911 (paratypes); KU 242-243-2 spec., Elk River, Elk Co., 11 July, 1912 (paratypes); KU 1756-1 spec., Marmaton River, Bourbon Co., 28 June, 1911 (paratype); KU 2526- 10 of 37 spec., Neosho River, Sec. 7, T. 19S, R. 12E, Lyon Co., 11 July, 1952; KU 2689-2 of 3 spec., South Fork of Cottonwood River, Sec. 25-36, T. 19S, R. 8E, Chase Co., 11 Aug., 1952; KU 2698-2 spec., South Fork of Cottonwood River, Sec. 33, T. 20S, R. 8E, Chase Co., 14 Aug., 1952; KU 2708-1 spec., South Fork of Cottonwood River at mouth of Baker Creek, Chase Co., 14 Aug., 1952; KU 2715-1 spec., Cedar Creek, Sec. 30, T. 21S, R. 6E, Chase Co., 15 Aug., 1952; KU 2868-1 spec., Marmaton River, Sec. 4, T. 26S, R. 24E, Bourbon Co., 7 April, 1953; KU 2879-2 spec., Spring River, Sec. 29, T. 34S, R. 25E, Cherokee Co., 8 April, 1953; KU 2906-3 spec., Neosho River, Sec. 16, T. 32S, R. 21E, Labette Co., 9 April, 1953; KU 2919-15 spec., Little Osage River, 5 miles east Mapleton, Bourbon Co., 9 May, 1953; KU 3175-1 spec., Neosho River, Sec. 4, T. 26S, R. 18E, Allen Co., 9 April, 1954; KU 3684-1 spec., Spring River, Sec. 1, T. 35S, R. 25E, Cherokee Co., 21 Aug., 1956; KU 4280-1 spec., Neosho River, Sec. 35, T. 28S, R. 19E, Neosho Co., 9 Aug., 1957; KU 4281-4285, 4287-4289-8 spec., Neosho River, Sec. 3 and 4, T. 24S, R. 17E, Woodson Co., Aug., 1958; KU 4286-1 spec., Marais des Cygnes River, Sec. 12, T. 17S, R. 17E, Franklin Co., 28 July, 1958. M. a. aureolum (Nebraska) KU 4157-30 spec., Niobrara River, Sec. 30, T. 33N, R. 11W, Holt Co., 5 May, 1958. The subspecies of M. aureolunz are separated chiefly on the basis of proportional measurements of the mouth. Moxostoma a. pisolabrum has an enlargement at the tip of the upper lip, which is usually developed into a bulbous knob that is conspicuous in ventral or lateral aspect. In M. a. aureolum the upper lip is nearly uniform in width (Trautman and Martin, 1951:4). Our measurements were made by methods given in the above citation, and are expressed as arithmetic ratios. Results 'Most specimens from the Kansas River Basin are intermediate between M. a. aureolum and M. a. pisolabrum (Table 1), thus extending Table 1. Comparison of specimens of Moxostoma aureolum from the Kansas River Basin with the subspecies M. a. aureolum and M. a. pisolabrum. Extremes are followed by the mean, and one standard deviation is below (in parentheses). Length-class (in mm.) 0-99 100-149 150-199 200-320 All fish Number of specimens: 1,4. a. aureolum - - - - - 0 7 13 9 30 Kansas River - - - - - - 40 / 2 4 48 Transactions Kansas Academy of Science M. a. pisolabrum ........... 34 7 12 12 65 Standard lengths: M. a. aureolum - - - - - 109-137, 127 152-187, 173 210-303, 248 109-303, 183 Kansas River - - - - - - 38-93, 57 118-141, 129 158-179, 168 206-297, 260 38-297, 82 M. a. pisolabrum - - - - 37-96, 54 103-142, 120 154-199, 184 205-320, 267 37-320, 156 Thickness of upper hp in head-length: M. a. aureolum - - - - - 18.9-22.4, 20.5 17.0-24.7, 21.8 17.8-23.7, 21.2 17.0-24.7,21.2 (1.4) (2.2) (2.0) (2.0) Kansas River - - - - - - 13.1-22.6, 16.7 16.2-16.4, 16.3 13.9-19.6, 16.8 13.9-20.7, 17.1 13.9-22.6, 16.7 (2.2) (3.0) (2.2) M. a. pisolabrum - - - - 10.7-17.3, 14.1 12.8-17.9, 14.6 13.2-17.0, 14.5 13.3-14.8, 14.0 10.7-17.9, 14.2 (1.8) (1.6) (1.0) (0.5) (1.4) f Thickness of upper lip in width of lower lip: M. a. aureolum - - - - - 4.8-5.6, 5.2 4.6-6.8, 5.7 4.6-6.2, 5.6 4.6-6.8, 5.5 (0.3) (0.6) (0.6) (0.6) Kansas River 3.1-5.8, 4.5 4.2-4.8, 4.5 4.3-4.9, 4.6 3.6-5.2, 4.6 3.1-5.8, 4.5 (0.7) (0.7) (0.7) M. a. pisolabrum - - - - • 2.9-4.3, 3.6 3.4-4.3, 3.9 3.2-4.0, 3.6 3.3-4.0, 3.6 2.9-4.3, 3.6 (0.4) (0.3) (0.3) (0.2) (0.3) • Moxostoma aureolum from Kansas River Basin 39 the known area of intergradation about 220 miles west. The localities where intergrades have been taken in Kansas are represented by circles in Figure 1, whereas dots denote specimens of M. a. pisolabrum. Our single specimen from the Missouri River (Fig. 1) has ratios (thickness of upper lip in head-length, 19.2; thickness of upper lip in width of lower lip, 5.5) similar to those in M. a. aureolum. Specimens from the Kansas River Basin are highly variable in thickness of the upper lip, and some could be identified with M. a. aureolum or M. a. pisolabrum; for example, two specimens that were caught at the same place and time in the Big Blue River have ratios of 13.9, 3.6 and 18.7, 5.2. However, 85 per cent of our 48 specimens from the Kansas River Basin have ratios between the mean values for M. a. aureolum and M. a. pisolabrum. Trautman and Martin (1951:8) also found, among their intergrades, specimens having ratios normal for each subspecies. Diagnostic measurements given by Trautman and Martin for M. a. aureolum were as follows (all length-classes) : thickness of upper lip in head-length, 20.0 (range 15.5-27.0), thickness of upper lip in width of lower lip, 5.2 (range 4.2-6.9); for intergrades: 17.5 (13.9-24.0), 4.5 (3.6-6.0); and for M. a. pisolabrum: 13.7 (10.5-16.3), 3.5 (2.8- 4.7). —State Biological Survey, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas Minckley is now with the University of Louisville, Department of Biology • Distributional Records of Amphibians and Reptiles in Kansas. JOHN M. LEGLER This paper deals with certain noteworthy specimens of amphibians and reptiles that were acquired by the University of Kansas Museum of Natural History (KU) in 1955 to 1959, when the author had curatorial responsibility for the herpetological collections at that institution.