Recognition and Redescription of a Distinctive Stoneroller from the Southern Interior Highlands

Populations of Campostoma (until now assigned to C. anomalum pullum) in parts of eastern Oklahoma and western Arkansas exhibit striking red or red-orange coloration in median fins and, usually, in all paired fins. This coloration is most intense in summer months, although it is present during much of the rest of the year, and is found in individuals of all sizes and both sexes. Such coloration is not found in contiguous populations of nominal C. a. pullum, or in any other Campostoma species. In addition to the red fin coloration, a distinct tubercle pattern on the nape of nuptial males, a unique pattern of dark pigment on the caudal fin of nuptial adults, and a minor row of teeth on the pharyngeal arch support the recognition of this form as a distinct species. We resurrect Campostoma spadiceum (Girard, 1856) as the valid name for this species and propose the common name Highland Stoneroller. We document its taxonomic history, discuss a junior synonym (Dionda grisea Girard, 1858), and compare C. spadiceum morphologically to contiguous C. a. pullum populations and to other recognized taxa in the genus. The ranges of C. spadiceum and C. a. pullum are largely non-overlapping, and we have found no morphological evidence of syntopic occurrence.