Bayou darter
| Bayou darter | |
|---|---|
| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Perciformes |
| Family: | Percidae |
| Genus: | Etheostoma |
| Species: | E. rubrum |
| Binomial name | |
| Etheostoma rubrum Raney & Suttkus, 1966 | |
The Bayou darter (Etheostoma rubrum) is a species of ray-finned fish in the perch family. It is endemic to western Mississippi in the United States, where it is found only in the Bayou Pierre River and its tributaries. It is listed by the IUCN as "Endangered" [1] and it is federally listed as a threatened species of the United States. The adult female is about 34 millimeters long and the adult male is about 37 millimeters.[2]
Distribution and habitat
The Bayou darter is endemic to the drainage of the Bayou Pierre River, a tributary of the Mississippi River. This fish is present in several tributaries flowing into the Bayou Pierre including White Oak Creek, Foster Creek, and Turkey Creek. It lives in fast flowing, shallow areas of its native streams. It can be found in riffles and in the water between riffles in areas with firm gravel substrates.[2] Associated fish species include brighteye darter (Etheostoma lynceum), least madtom (Noturus hildebrandi), bluntface shiner (Cyprinella camura), and redfin darter (Etheostoma whipplei).[3]
Behavior
Spawning occurs in April through May and sometimes into August.[4] The female lays up to 75 eggs, and probably spawns at least twice during the spawning season.[2] The fish lives about 3 years, with the male living slightly longer than the female on average.[4] This species has low genetic diversity.[5]
The Bayou darter eats insects and their larvae, including caddisflies, blackflies, midges, and mayflies. It increases its food consumption in the time leading up to spawning.[2]
Status
The main threat to the species is the alteration of its habitat by human beings.[2] The Bayou Pierre is currently experiencing heavy erosion, particularly headcutting, in which erosion moves upstream in waves.[3] Channeling, dredging and mining on the adjacent floodplains cause some alteration. These processes cause an increase in sediment. Petroleum exploration has affected the area. Agriculture, especially silviculture affect the area by destroying riparian habitat, causing erosion and increasing sedimentation. This process destroys the riffles the fish occupies, and creates new riffles elsewhere, causing the fish population to move.[3] Fertilizers and herbicides may enter the water.[2] As a consequence of these factors, the IUCN has listed the Bayou darter as "Endangered" and considers that further habitat and population monitoring programs should be undertaken to protect the fish and its habitat.[1]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 NatureServe (2013). "Etheostoma rubrum". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 3.1. International Union for Conservation of Nature. Retrieved November 22, 2013.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 USFWS. Etheostoma rubrum Recovery Plan. July 1990.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Ross, S. T., et al. (2001). Stream erosion and densities of Etheostoma rubrum (Percidae) and associated riffle-inhabiting fishes: Biotic stability in a variable habitat. Copeia 4 916.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Knight, J. G. and S. T. Ross. (1992). Reproduction, age and growth of the Bayou Darter Etheostoma rubrum (Pisces, Percidae): An endemic of Bayou Pierre. American Midland Naturalist 127(1) 91-105.
- ↑ Slack, W. T., et al. (2010). Conservation genetics of the threatened Bayou Darter (Percidae: Etheostoma rubrum) in the Bayou Pierre System of Southwestern Mississippi. Copeia 1 176-180.