Lake suckers of the genus Chasmistes are a unique and important component of the fish assemblages of the western USA. To review recent research, discuss issues, and exchange information, researchers and managers working on the various species participated in a symposium on lake sucker biology as part of the 2010 annual meeting of the Western Division of the American Fisheries Society, held in Salt Lake City, Utah. This special feature of the Western North American Naturalist is dedicated to lake sucker ecology and natural history and provides a central venue for publication of several papers presented in the symposium. To provide a link to the broader peer-reviewed, published literature on lake sucker biology, we have included a bibliography as an (appendix.