Anne Frijsinger & Mat Vestjens, Holland
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Gasterosteus aculeatus Linnaeus, 1758
The three-spined stickleback is not only found in freshwater and brackish water, but also in seawater near the coast, so the small fish can easily tolerate different salinities and temperatures.
The fish reach a size of around 8 cm in fresh water and even 11 cm in the sea.
The male builds a mating nest at the bottom of the water on various plant material and tries to lure a female into the nest for mating, the bright red or orange mating coloration supports this intention.
The stickleback is an all-rounder that feeds on a wide variety of small marine animals and sometimes does not even stop at its own fry.
“Females and juveniles as well as males that are not ready to reproduce usually have a simple black-brown marbling on a light, silvery background. The back is darker in color than the ventral side. The silver sheen is particularly pronounced in saltwater populations. In general, the coloration varies depending on the habitat; brass-yellow and completely black populations are also known. During the spawning season, adult males wear a colorful breeding dress: the marbling recedes and the ventral side turns an intense orange-red from the tip of the snout to the caudal peduncle. The back and the iris of the eyes take on a bright turquoise color.” Source Wikipedia
The three-spined stickleback is native to most inland and coastal waters north of 30°N. It has long been a subject of scientific study for many reasons.
Synonymised names:
Gasteracanthus cataphractus Pallas, 1814 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus aculeatus aculeatus Linnaeus, 1758 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus aculeatus algeriensis Sauvage, 1874 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus aculeatus gymnurus Cuvier, 1829 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus aculeatus leiurus Cuvier, 1829 · unaccepted (junior synonym)
Gasterosteus aculeatus messinicus Stephanidis, 1971 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus aculeatus santaeannae Regan, 1909 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus aculeatus trachurus Cuvier, 1829 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus aculeatus williamsoni Girard, 1854 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus algeriensis Sauvage, 1874 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus argentatissimus Blanchard, 1866 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus argyropomus Cuvier, 1829 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus atkinsi Bean, 1879 · unaccepted (misspelling)
Gasterosteus atkinsii Bean, 1879 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus bailloni Blanchard, 1866 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus biaculeatus Mitchill, 1815 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus biarmatus Krynicki, 1840 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus bispinosus Walbaum, 1792 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus brachycentrus Cuvier, 1829 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus cataphractus (Pallas, 1814) · unaccepted
Gasterosteus cuvieri Girard, 1850 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus Dekayi Ayres, 1855 · unaccepted (misspelling)
Gasterosteus dimidiatus Reinhardt, 1837 · unaccepted (synonym)
Gasterosteus elegans Blanchard, 1866 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus gymnurus Cuvier, 1829 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus hologymnus Regan, 1909 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus inopinatus Girard, 1854 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus insculptus Richardson, 1855 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus intermedius Girard, 1856 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus leiurus Cuvier, 1829 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus loricatus Reinhardt, 1837 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus nemausensis Crespon, 1844 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus neoboracensis DeKay, 1842 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus neustrianus Blanchard, 1866 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus niger Cuvier, 1829 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus noveboracensis Cuvier, 1829 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus obolarius Cuvier, 1829 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus plebeius Girard, 1854 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus ponticus von Nordmann, 1840 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus pugetti Girard, 1856 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus quadrispinosa Crespon, 1844 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus quadrispinosus Crespon, 1844 · unaccepted (misspelling)
Gasterosteus santaeannae Regan, 1909 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus semiarmatus Cuvier, 1829 · unaccepted (synonym)
Gasterosteus semiloricatus Cuvier, 1829 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus serratus Ayres, 1855 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus spinulosus Yarrell, 1835 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus suppositus Sauvage, 1874 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus teraculeatus Lacepède, 1801 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus tetracanthus Cuvier, 1829 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus texanus Sauvage, 1874 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus trachurus Cuvier, 1829 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus williamsoni Girard, 1854 · unaccepted
Gastrosteus aculeatus (Linnaeus, 1758) · unaccepted (synonym)
Gastrosteus hologymnus Regan, 1909 · unaccepted
Gladiunculus bispinosus · uncertain > unassessed
Leiurus aculeatus (Linnaeus, 1758) · unaccepted (senior synonym)
Direct children (7):
Subspecies Gasterosteus aculeatus aculeatus Linnaeus, 1758 accepted as Gasterosteus aculeatus Linnaeus, 1758
Subspecies Gasterosteus aculeatus algeriensis Sauvage, 1874 accepted as Gasterosteus aculeatus Linnaeus, 1758
Subspecies Gasterosteus aculeatus leiurus Cuvier, 1829 accepted as Gasterosteus aculeatus Linnaeus, 1758 (junior synonym)
Subspecies Gasterosteus aculeatus messinicus Stephanidis, 1971 accepted as Gasterosteus aculeatus Linnaeus, 1758
Subspecies Gasterosteus aculeatus santaeannae Regan, 1909 accepted as Gasterosteus aculeatus Linnaeus, 1758
Subspecies Gasterosteus aculeatus trachurus Cuvier, 1829 accepted as Gasterosteus aculeatus Linnaeus, 1758
Subspecies Gasterosteus aculeatus williamsoni Girard, 1854 accepted as Gasterosteus aculeatus Linnaeus, 1758
The three-spined stickleback is not only found in freshwater and brackish water, but also in seawater near the coast, so the small fish can easily tolerate different salinities and temperatures.
The fish reach a size of around 8 cm in fresh water and even 11 cm in the sea.
The male builds a mating nest at the bottom of the water on various plant material and tries to lure a female into the nest for mating, the bright red or orange mating coloration supports this intention.
The stickleback is an all-rounder that feeds on a wide variety of small marine animals and sometimes does not even stop at its own fry.
“Females and juveniles as well as males that are not ready to reproduce usually have a simple black-brown marbling on a light, silvery background. The back is darker in color than the ventral side. The silver sheen is particularly pronounced in saltwater populations. In general, the coloration varies depending on the habitat; brass-yellow and completely black populations are also known. During the spawning season, adult males wear a colorful breeding dress: the marbling recedes and the ventral side turns an intense orange-red from the tip of the snout to the caudal peduncle. The back and the iris of the eyes take on a bright turquoise color.” Source Wikipedia
The three-spined stickleback is native to most inland and coastal waters north of 30°N. It has long been a subject of scientific study for many reasons.
Synonymised names:
Gasteracanthus cataphractus Pallas, 1814 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus aculeatus aculeatus Linnaeus, 1758 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus aculeatus algeriensis Sauvage, 1874 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus aculeatus gymnurus Cuvier, 1829 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus aculeatus leiurus Cuvier, 1829 · unaccepted (junior synonym)
Gasterosteus aculeatus messinicus Stephanidis, 1971 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus aculeatus santaeannae Regan, 1909 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus aculeatus trachurus Cuvier, 1829 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus aculeatus williamsoni Girard, 1854 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus algeriensis Sauvage, 1874 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus argentatissimus Blanchard, 1866 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus argyropomus Cuvier, 1829 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus atkinsi Bean, 1879 · unaccepted (misspelling)
Gasterosteus atkinsii Bean, 1879 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus bailloni Blanchard, 1866 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus biaculeatus Mitchill, 1815 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus biarmatus Krynicki, 1840 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus bispinosus Walbaum, 1792 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus brachycentrus Cuvier, 1829 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus cataphractus (Pallas, 1814) · unaccepted
Gasterosteus cuvieri Girard, 1850 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus Dekayi Ayres, 1855 · unaccepted (misspelling)
Gasterosteus dimidiatus Reinhardt, 1837 · unaccepted (synonym)
Gasterosteus elegans Blanchard, 1866 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus gymnurus Cuvier, 1829 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus hologymnus Regan, 1909 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus inopinatus Girard, 1854 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus insculptus Richardson, 1855 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus intermedius Girard, 1856 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus leiurus Cuvier, 1829 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus loricatus Reinhardt, 1837 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus nemausensis Crespon, 1844 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus neoboracensis DeKay, 1842 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus neustrianus Blanchard, 1866 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus niger Cuvier, 1829 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus noveboracensis Cuvier, 1829 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus obolarius Cuvier, 1829 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus plebeius Girard, 1854 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus ponticus von Nordmann, 1840 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus pugetti Girard, 1856 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus quadrispinosa Crespon, 1844 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus quadrispinosus Crespon, 1844 · unaccepted (misspelling)
Gasterosteus santaeannae Regan, 1909 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus semiarmatus Cuvier, 1829 · unaccepted (synonym)
Gasterosteus semiloricatus Cuvier, 1829 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus serratus Ayres, 1855 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus spinulosus Yarrell, 1835 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus suppositus Sauvage, 1874 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus teraculeatus Lacepède, 1801 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus tetracanthus Cuvier, 1829 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus texanus Sauvage, 1874 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus trachurus Cuvier, 1829 · unaccepted
Gasterosteus williamsoni Girard, 1854 · unaccepted
Gastrosteus aculeatus (Linnaeus, 1758) · unaccepted (synonym)
Gastrosteus hologymnus Regan, 1909 · unaccepted
Gladiunculus bispinosus · uncertain > unassessed
Leiurus aculeatus (Linnaeus, 1758) · unaccepted (senior synonym)
Direct children (7):
Subspecies Gasterosteus aculeatus aculeatus Linnaeus, 1758 accepted as Gasterosteus aculeatus Linnaeus, 1758
Subspecies Gasterosteus aculeatus algeriensis Sauvage, 1874 accepted as Gasterosteus aculeatus Linnaeus, 1758
Subspecies Gasterosteus aculeatus leiurus Cuvier, 1829 accepted as Gasterosteus aculeatus Linnaeus, 1758 (junior synonym)
Subspecies Gasterosteus aculeatus messinicus Stephanidis, 1971 accepted as Gasterosteus aculeatus Linnaeus, 1758
Subspecies Gasterosteus aculeatus santaeannae Regan, 1909 accepted as Gasterosteus aculeatus Linnaeus, 1758
Subspecies Gasterosteus aculeatus trachurus Cuvier, 1829 accepted as Gasterosteus aculeatus Linnaeus, 1758
Subspecies Gasterosteus aculeatus williamsoni Girard, 1854 accepted as Gasterosteus aculeatus Linnaeus, 1758
