Amber darter

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Amber darter

Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Actinopterygii
Order:	Perciformes
Family:	Percidae
Genus:	Percina
Species:	*P. antesella*

Binomial name

Percinus antesella
Williams & Etnier, 1977

The amber darter (Percina antesella) is a small, endangered freshwater fish of the Conasauga and Etowah rivers in Georgia and Tennessee.

The amber darter is typically less than 2.5 inches in length and has a slender body. It has dark saddle-like markings on its golden brown upper body, while the belly is a yellow-to-cream color. Breeding males have blue throats.

While there is little data available about the breeding habits of the amber darter, what information is available suggests that it spawns from late fall to early spring. The amber darter likely lives up to 3 years. Its diet consists mainly of snails and insects.

The amber darter inhabits the Coosa River system, living in the Consuaga and Etowah rivers of northern Georgia and southeastern Tennessee. In these rivers, it prefers to inhabit riffle areas over gravel substrate and sand. During the summer, when aquatic vegetation grows in the rivers, the amber darter feeds in the vegetation and uses it for cover.

A proposed reservoir may put the survival of the amber darter at risk by altering water and habitat quality in the amber darter's downstream habitat. Because of the amber darter's limited distribution, practically any activity that could degrade habitat or water quality, such as logging, chemical spills, or construction could threaten the existence of the amber darter. Conservation efforts focus on habitat preservation.