Gasterosteidae, Bonaparte, 1831

Family Gasterosteidae View in CoL

Sticklebacks

A small family comprising five genera and approximately 21 species, distributed across fresh and coastal waters in Eurasia and northern America. They are characterised by the presence of a series of spines in front of the soft dorsal, a single spine in the anal, a pair of pelvic spines (which are absent in many species), and in most species, several bony scutes on the flank and the caudal peduncle. The male constructs a nest of vegetal debris and algae in all species, anchored to the substrate or submerged vegetation. The nest is held together by a thread-like substance secreted by the kidney, which acts as a glue. The male guides the female into the nest, where the eggs are laid and fertilised. The male then guards the nest and subsequently the young. Sticklebacks represent significant species in the fields of behavioural and evolutionary biology. The number of species in Gasterosteus has been a topic of discussion. Previously, several populations from northern Eurasia and America had been placed in

Gasterosteus gymnurus . However, this classification has not been accepted and is not supported by large-scale molecular data, suggesting that all Western Palaearctic Gasterosteus populations are closely related. Further reading. McLennan & Mattern 2001 (phylogeny); Mattern & McLennan 2004 (phylogeny).