Scaphirhynchus - American shovelnose sturgeons
Classification
Genus:
Scaphirhynchus - American shovelnose sturgeons
Family: Acipenseridae - Sturgeons
Class: Chondrostei - Sturgeons
Superclass: Osteichthyes - Bony fishes
Description
Scaphirhynchus is a genus of sturgeons native to the United States of America. All species in this genus are considered to be threatened. The pallid sturgeon is Endangered and the Alabama sturgeon is Critically Endangered.
Member species are found in the Mississippi, Missouri, and Alabama Rivers.
Currently, three species in this genus are recognized:
- Scaphirhynchus albus (S. A. Forbes & R. E. Richardson, 1905) (pallid sturgeon)
- Scaphirhynchus platorynchus (Rafinesque, 1820) (shovelnose sturgeon)
- Scaphirhynchus suttkusi J. D. Williams & Clemmer, 1991 (Alabama sturgeon)