Kentucky Fishes 
57 
Petromyzontidae — lampreys 
Icthyomyzon bdellium (Jordan). Ohio lamprey. D,E,F,G,H,J,K,L. 
Occasional in the Green, Cumberland, Kentucky, Licking and Ohio 
rivers. The specific distinctiveness of this form deserves further study. 
Hubbs and Trautman (1937:14) resurrected the name bdellium and 
suggested that the two “geographic forms” ( bdellium and castaneus ) may 
intergrade in the lower Ohio River. Starrett et al. (1960) identified only /. 
castaneus in the Wabash River, Illinois, where Hubbs and Trautman had 
earlier identified specimens as I. bdellium. The characteristics of the two 
forms overlap greatly and specimens cannot be assigned with confidence 
to the form bdellium; consequently, parasitic lampreys from the middle 
and upper Ohio River and its major tributaries are identified arbitrarily 
as bdellium on the basis of geography. 
Ichthyomyzon castaneus Girard. Chestnut lamprey. C,D. Occasional 
in the lower Ohio, Mississippi, Cumberland and Tennessee rivers. See 
comments under I. bdellium. 
Ichthyomyzon fossor Reighard and Cummins. Northern brook lam- 
prey. J,L. Rare in the upper parts of the Kentucky (EKU, UMMZ, 
KNP), Big Sandy (UL) and Little Sandy River (KNP) systems. 
Ichthyomyzon gagei Hubbs and Trautman. Southern brook lamprey. 
C. A record based on one specimen from Clarks River, Calloway County 
(SIUC). 
Ichthyomyzon greeleyi Hubbs and Trautman. Allegheny brook lam- 
prey. F,H,J. Rare and sporadic in the upper Green (USNM), Cum- 
berland (REJ) and Kentucky (KFW, UL) drainages. Hoyt’s (1979) 
record of this species from the Ohio River at Paducah is not considered 
valid, and was probably based on misidentified I. castaneus. 
Ichthyomyzon unicuspis Hubbs and Trautman. Silver lamprey. 
C,E,F,H,J. Occasional in large rivers or their major tributaries 
throughout the state. 
Lampetra aepyptera (Abbott). Least brook lamprey. B,C,D,E,F, 
G,H,J,K,L. The most common lamprey in Kentucky, occurring in small 
to medium-size streams throughout the state except in the extreme west. 
Lampetra lamottei (Lesueur). American brook lamprey. F,J,L. 
Occasional in the upper reaches of the Barren, Green, Kentucky and Big 
Sandy drainages. 
Acipenseridae — sturgeons 
Acipenser fulvescens Rafinesque. Lake sturgeon. C,D,H. Formerly 
present in the main channels of the Ohio, Mississippi, Tennessee and 
Cumberland rivers (Call 1896, Woolman 1892, Evermann 1902). Most 
recent specimen from Cumberland River, McCreary County (UL). 
Status in Ohio and Mississippi rivers uncertain although several commer- 
cial fishermen told me that lake sturgeons are caught during early spring 
