Pungitius

...They are also important as natural food for large carnivorous fish and waterfowl, and are known to be hosts for tapeworms and nematodes, sometimes showing high parasitism. The stickleback family is divided into five genera, and in Japan there are two genera: the stickleback genus Gasterosteus , which has three spines on its dorsal fin, and the three-spined stickleback genus Pungitius , which has 7 to 13 spines. These two genera include fish that grow in the sea and go up rivers in the spring to spawn, and fish that live in freshwater all their lives, and both have extremely wide distribution ranges, probably because their living areas are large.

*Some of the terminology that mentions "Pungitius" is listed below.

Source | Heibonsha World Encyclopedia 2nd Edition | Information

…また，大型の肉食魚や水鳥類の天然餌料として重要であるほか，ジョウチュウ(条虫)類やセンチュウ(線虫)類などの宿主としても知られ，ときに高い寄生率を示す。　トゲウオ科は5属に分かれ，日本には背びれに3本のとげをもつイトヨ属Gasterosteusと，このとげが7～13本のトミヨ属Pungitiusとが生息する。この2属は海で成長して春の産卵期に川にさかのぼるものと，一生淡水中で生活するものとを含み，生活圏が大きくなるためか，ともに分布範囲がきわめて広い。…

※「Pungitius」について言及している用語解説の一部を掲載しています。

出典｜株式会社平凡社世界大百科事典 第２版について | 情報