Black Buffalo, Ictiobus niger
Black Buffalo, Ictiobus niger. Fish caught in the St. Francis River in Wappapello, Missouri. Length: 79 cm (2 feet 7 inches). Catch, photograph, and identification courtesy of Ben Cantrell, San Diego, California.
The Black Buffalo, Ictiobus niger, is a member of the Sucker or Catostomidae Family, and is known in Mexico as matalote negro. Globally there are five species in the genus Ictiobus, of which four are found in the freshwater systems of mainland Mexico.
The Black Buffalo has a compressed nearly round body and are slender compared to the other Buffalofishes with a depth that is 30% to 38% of standard length. Dorsally they are slate to bronze in color with a green hinge and transition to lighter colors ventrally. Their fins are a dark olive to a slate gray color. Breeding males develop minute tubercles on the sides of its head and turn darker in color. Their head and snout are broadly rounded with a small slightly oblique mouth that is equipped with short narrow teeth with their eye being closer to the tip of the snout that the rear of the head. Their anal fin has 8 to 10 rays; their caudal fin is forked and symmetrical; their dorsal fin has 22 to 31 rays and is sickle shaped; their pectoral fins have 15 to 16 rays; and, their pelvic fins have 9 to 11 rays. They have fewer than 60 gill rakers. They are covered with large smooth scales. They have a prominent lateral line.
The Black Buffalo is found in lakes, ponds and the backwaters of small and large rivers. They reach a maximum of 1.23 m (4 feet 0 inches) in length and 28.7 kg (63 pounds) in weight. They consume algae, clams, crustaceans and diatoms and limited amounts of insects and water plants. In turn their eggs are heavily prey upon by other fishes within their environment. Reproduction is oviparous occurring in groups with breeding occurring in streams and ponds with a significant flow over sand and gravel substrate. Males strongly outnumber females by as much as 10 to 1 in the spawning arena. Each female will release 9,000 eggs annually and may mate with several males. Fertilization is external and the eggs are adhesive and adhere to the substrate. They are known to hybridize with the Bigmouth Buffalo, Ictiobus cyprinellus. They have life spans of up to twenty-four years. The Black Buffalo is poorly studied with very limited information available about their lifestyle and behavioral patterns including specific details on age, growth, longevity, movement patterns, diet, habitat use, and reproduction.
The Black Buffalo has a limited range in Mexican waters being native to the freshwater systems of the State of Coahuila in the extreme northeast corner of the mainland.
The Black Buffalo can be confused with the Bigmouth Buffalo, Ictiobus cyprinellus (not found in Mexican waters; large terminal mouth) and the Smallmouth Buffalo, Ictiobus bulalus (deeper body; significantly smaller eyes).
From a conservation perspective the Black Buffalo is currently considered to be of Least Concern, however; their populations are believed to be in decline and in Mexico they are currently considered to be THREATENED. They are vulnerable to habitat degradation which includes the construction of dams altering their native environments and overfishing. They are fished commercially at a minor level. They are also pursued by recreational anglers as a game fish. Efforts are currently on-going to raise them via aquaculture with mixed results..