Ammocrypta

Ammocrypta is a genus of freshwater ray-finned fish, commonly known as the sand darters, which is classified in the subfamily Etheostomatinae, part of the family Percidae which also includes the perches, ruffes and pikeperches. The species in the genus occur in eastern North America in Canada and the continental United States.

==Characteristics== Ammocrypta species are characterised by having rather elongate and slender bodies. Their bodies are translucent and there is only a single spine in the anal fin. They also have Spreitzer vertebrae, that is that the first three vertebrae of the backbone, counting from the head, have an open haemal arch which allows for the fish's kidney to expand. They have the habit of burying into the sand or gravel bed of streams, only their eyes being visible. The translucence of their bodies and their habit of burying themselves gives them some protection against predation.