biology

Rutilus meidingeri

Rutilus meidingeri is a biology topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Rutilus meidingeri rather than just read about it. In short: Rutilus meidingeri, the pearlfish, is a species of freshwater ray-finned fish belonging to the family Leuciscidae, which includes the daces, Eurasian minnows and related fishes. This species is currently thought to be endemic to Austria but it may occur in Slovakia or Hungary.

Key takeaways

Rutilus meidingeri belongs to biology; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Rutilus meidingeri to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Rutilus meidingeri from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Rutilus meidingeri, the pearlfish, is a species of freshwater ray-finned fish belonging to the family Leuciscidae, which includes the daces, Eurasian minnows and related fishes. This species is currently thought to be endemic to Austria but it may occur in Slovakia or Hungary.

Taxonomy Rutilus meidingeri was first formally described as Leuciscus meidingeri in 1851 by the Austrian zoologist Johann Jakob Heckel with its type locality given as Atter Lake in Austria. This species is now classified within the genus Rutilus in the subfamily Leuciscinae of the family Leuciscidae.

Etymology Rutilus meidingeri belongs to the genus Rutilus, a name which means "red, golden red and reddish yellow" and is an allusion to the red colour of the fins of R. rutilus, the type species of the genus. The specific name is an eponym which honours the Austrian aristocrat Carl von Meidinger, who illustrated this species in 1794, although he called it Cyprinus grislagine.

Description Rutilus meidingeri is told apart from other Roach species in the Danube drainage by its cylindrical body, having between 62 and 67 scales along the lateral line, the abdomen behind the pelvic fins is rounded and males develop nuptial tubercles on the top and sides of their heads. It also has a stout, rounded snout, a subterminal mouth and the fins and iris are grey or yellowish. The dorsal fin has 8 to 9+1⁄2 branch fin rays. The pearlfish has a maximum total length of 70 cm (28 in) with a maximum weight of 5 kg (11 lb).

Distribution and habitat Rutilus meidingeri is known with certainty only from subalpine lakes in Austria, although the IUCN state that it is found in the Chiemsee in Bavaria as well as Attersee, Mondsee, Wolfgangsee and Traunsee. It has also been recorded in the Traun river and in the main channel of the Danube. Records in the Danube downstream from Austria are thought to refer to vagrants.

References

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Rutilus meidingeri

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Rutilus meidingeri claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In biology, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Rutilus meidingeri before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Rutilus meidingeri ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Rutilus meidingeri

In research: Rutilus meidingeri appears in biology research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Rutilus meidingeri in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Rutilus meidingeri is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Fish described in 1851, Habitats Directive species, IUCN Red List near threatened species, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Rutilus meidingeri outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Rutilus meidingeri in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Rutilus meidingeri means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Rutilus meidingeri out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Rutilus meidingeri in simple terms?

Why does Rutilus meidingeri matter?

Because it connects several biology ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Rutilus meidingeri?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Rutilus meidingeri.