Blackfin sucker

The blackfin sucker (Vexillichthys atripinnis) is a species of ray-finned fish in the family Catostomidae. It is the only species in the genus Vexillichthys.^[3] It is found only in the United States in the headwaters of the Barren River system in south central Kentucky and Tennessee.^[2]

Blackfin sucker
Conservation status
Near Threatened  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Vulnerable  (NatureServe)[2]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Actinopterygii
Order:	Cypriniformes
Family:	Catostomidae
Subfamily:	Catostominae
Genus:	Vexillichthys Armbruster, 2024
Species:	V. atripinnis
Binomial name
Vexillichthys atripinnis (R. M. Bailey, 1959)
Synonyms
Thoburnia atripinnis

Prior to 2025, it was placed in the genus Thoburnia. However, a phylogenetic analysis found it to actually comprise a distinct lineage sister to the hogsuckers (genus Hypentelium), and it was thus placed in its own genus, Vexillichthys. The genus was named after the Latin word vexillum (meaning "flag"), referencing the distinctive pattern of approximately 13 horizontal light & dark stripes on adults, which resembles the American flag.^[4]