Article © J. R. Shute / Conservation Fisheries, uploaded January 28, 2023.

With the first Catfish of the Month of 2023, I am reminded how much I love madtoms. They're illegal to keep in some parts of the UK as part of a blanket ban on Ictlaurids, but thankfully its is legal to keep members of this genus in Scotland while their larger cousins are not allowed. However, some species of madtoms, or Noturus, are far from safe in their natural habitats and must be rightly left there and protected. J.R Shute of Conservation Fisheries, Inc., Tennessee, goes on to explain more.

The Carolina Madtom, Noturus furiosus, is a boldly patterned member of the subgenus Rabida. Most members of this group have heavily armored pectoral spines, and furiosus is no exception. This rare Madtom is known from the lower Piedmont and upper Coastal Plain of North Carolina in the Neuse and Tar river systems. The Carolina Madtom was listed as Endangered by the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) in 2021. They have all but disappeared from the Neuse River (if indeed any still persist there). They are still known from the Tar River but remain rare even there.

Like most Madtoms these are nocturnal, cruising the stream floor for food items. They feed mostly on aquatic insects and worms. Spawning takes place in late Spring through much of the Summer. As in other Madtoms, eggs are laid in a cohesive cluster under a piece of cover, usually a flat "slabrock" or submerged piece of wood. The male guards the nest until the eggs hatch and continue guarding them until the fry are able to leave the nest. This can be up to a month during which time the males remain sealed under the nest cover. If the nest is disturbed, the males will often eat the eggs rather than let a predator have them. This large Madtom (up to five or six inches total length) can lay 200 or more eggs at a time.

The primary threats to the Carolina Madtom are sedimentation from poor agricultural practices and development. It also appears that the introduced Flathead Catfish, Pylodictis olivaris may be a predator on the smaller Madtom. If anyone should ever see one of these rare Madtoms, they should be left alone. A voucher photo can be taken so long as the fish is not handled. There are no other Madtoms on the Atlantic Slope that these could be confused with.

Conservation Fisheries, Inc. (CFI) is currently propagating Carolina Madtoms under contract with the USFWS and in cooperation with the NC State Conservation Aquaculture Center Marion Fish Hatchery in Marion, NC. CFI was initially contracted to develop propagation protocols in hopes of restoring this beautiful Madtom into suitable habitat within its historic range. Propagated fish have been stocked by USFWS into a stream within their historic range in hopes of re-establishing a viable population therein.

Copyright information for the images used in this article can be found on the species' full Cat-eLog page.

Cat-eLog Data Sheet
Scientific Name	Noturus furiosus  Jordan & Meek, 1889
Common Names	Carolina Madtom Carolina-giftmalle (Denmark)
Type Locality	Neuse River, at Millburnie, near Raleigh, Wake County, North Carolina, U.S.A.
Pronunciation	no two russ
Etymology	From the Greek notos, meaning back and oura, meaning tail. In reference to the confluent adipose and caudal fins.
Articles
Species Information
Size	120mm or 4.7" SL. Find near, nearer or same sized spp.
Habitat Information
Distribution	North America: Neuse and Tar River drainages in North Carolina, USA. North American Atlantic Drainages, Neuse (click on these areas to find other species found there) North American Atlantic Drainages, Tar (click on these areas to find other species found there) Login to view the map.
IUCN Red List Category	Near Threatened , range map and more is available on the IUCN species page. Last assessed 2012.
Husbandry Information
Breeding Reports	There is no breeding report.
Further Information
Reference	Proceedings of the United States National Museum v. 11 (no. 723), pp 351, Pl. 43 (figs. 1-1b).
Registered Keepers	There is but a single registered keeper, view all "my cats" data.
Wishlists	Love this species? Click the heart to add it to your wish list. There is but a single wish to keep this species, see who wants what.
Spotters	Spotted this species somewhere? Click the binoculars! There is but a single record of this fish being seen, view it.
Forum BBCode
	Search for N. furiosus
	Look up N. furiosus on AquaticRepublic.com
	Look up N. furiosus on Fishbase
	Look up N. furiosus on Encyclopedia of Life
	Look up N. furiosus on Global Biodiversity Information Facility
	LFS label creator ARN ref:1.5.32.4044
Last Update	2020 Oct 14 02:04 (species record created: 2023 Jan 28 01:35)

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