The scientific name "Scaphirhynchus", Greek, means "spade snout," and "platorynchus", Greek, means "broad snout." The shovelnose sturgeon is characterized by a long slender filament on the upper lobe of the caudal fin. They have a flattened rostrum (modified snout) that is also shovel shaped. There are four fringed barbels on the ventral side of the rostrum that can be found in a straight line, which is equidistant from the mouth opening to the tip of the snout, unlike pallid sturgeon. The belly of the shovelnose sturgeon is covered with scale-like plates, which is another distinguishing factor from pallid sturgeon who have primarily scaleless bellies. Coloration of the shovelnose sturgeon ranges from a light-brown to buff with a white belly (Pflieger 1997).