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Slender Madtom
Noturus exilis
About This Fish

The Slender Madtom has a disjunct distribution in the central United States, including the Tennessee and Cumberland river drainages. They live in rocky pools and riffles of small creeks to small rivers. As the common name suggests, Slender Madtoms have a slender body. As members of the catfish family, all madtoms have whiskers (barbels) around their mouth with taste buds that aid in finding food. Like all members of the genus Noturus, Slender Madtoms are smaller catfish reaching a maximum size of 5.75 inches.

noturus_exilis_slender_madtom_
Ictaluridae >
Noturus
Alabama (AL), Mississippi (MS), Tennessee (TN), Kentucky (KY)
South Fork Cumberland – 05130104, Caney – 05130108, Stones – 05130203, Lower Cumberland-Sycamore – 05130202, Harpeth – 05130204, Lower Cumberland – 05130205, Red – 05130206, Wheeler Lake – 06030002, Upper Elk – 06030003, Lower Elk – 06030004, Pickwick Lake – 06030005, Bear – 06030006, Lower Tennessee-Beech – 06040001, Upper Duck – 06040002, Lower Duck – 06040003, Buffalo – 06040004, Kentucky Lake – 06040005

Literature

McAllister, C.T., W.F. Font, M.B. Connior, H.W. Robison, T.J. Fayton, N.G. Stokes, and C.D. Criscione. 2015. Trematode parasites (Digenea) of the slender madtom Noturus exilis and black river madtom Noturus maydeni (Siluriformes: Ictaluridae) from Arkansas, USA. Comparative Parasitology. 82(1):137-144. http://www.academia.edu/download/39879731/Trematode_Parasites_Digenea_of_the_Sle20151110-30263-amvism.pdf

Blanton, R.E., L.M. Page, and S.A. Hilber. 2013. Timing of clade divergence and discordant estimates of genetic and morphological diversity in the Slender Madtom, Noturus exilis (Ictaluridae). Molecular phylogenetics and evolution. 66(3):679-693. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1055790312004289

Simon, T.P., and B.M. Burr. 2004. Description of developmental stages of the stonecat, Noturus flavus and the slender madtom, Noturus exilis Siluriformes: Ictaluridae. Proceedings of the Indiana Academy of Science. 113(2):123-132. https://journals.iupui.edu/index.php/ias/article/download/8540/8538

Banks, S.M., and R.J. DiStefano. 2002. Diurnal Habitat Associations of the Madtoms Noturus albater, N. exilis, N. flavater and N. flavus in Missouri Ozarks Streams. The American midland naturalist. 148(1):138-146. https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Robert_Distefano2/publication/271852550_Banks_SM_and_RJ_DiStefano_2002_Diurnal_habitat_associations_of_the_madtoms_Noturus_albater_N_exilis_N_flavater_and_N_flavus_in_Missouri_Ozarks_streams_American_Midland_Naturalist_148_138-145/links/54db8a9f0cf28d3de65ba698/Banks-SM-and-RJ-DiStefano-2002-Diurnal-habitat-associations-of-the-madtoms-Noturus-albater-N-exilis-N-flavater-and-N-flavus-in-Missouri-Ozarks-streams-American-Midland-Naturalist-148-138-145.pdf

Lyons, J. 1996. Recent decline in the distribution and abundance of slender madtom (Noturus exilis) in Wisconsin. Journal of Freshwater Ecology. 11(4):415-419. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/02705060.1996.9664468

Phillips, E., and R.V. Kilambi. 1996. Food habits of four benthic fish species (Etheostoma spectabile, Percina caprodes, Noturus exilis, Cottus carolinae) from northwest Arkansas streams. The Southwestern Naturalist. 41:69-73. https://www.jstor.org/stable/30054446

Layher, W.G., and F.B. Cross. 1987. New Distributional Records of the Rosyface Shiner and Slender Madtom in Kansas. Transactions of the Kansas Academy of Science. 90(3/4):150-152. https://www.jstor.org/stable/3627797

Vives, S.P. 1987. Aspects of the life history of the slender madtom Noturus exilis in northeastern Oklahoma (Pisces: Ictaluridae). American Midland Naturalist. 167-176. http://www.nativefishlab.net/library/textpdf/13168.pdf

Burr, B.M. 1984. Reproductive biology of the checkered madtom (Noturus flavater) with observations on nesting in the Ozark (N. albater) and slender (N. exilis) madtoms (Siluriformes: Ictaluridae). American Midland Naturalist. 408-414. https://www.jstor.org/stable/2425447

Robison, H.W., and S. Winters. 1978. Occurrence of the Slender Madtom, Noturus exilis Nelson (Osteichthyes: Ictaluridae), in the Little River System, Arkansas. The Southwestern Naturalist. 23(4):688-689.

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This project was made possible in part by the Institute of Museum and Library Services, MA-30-15-0420-15.