Distribution in the area:
Faraday Lake, Limerick Lake,
Lower Paudash Lake,
Name:
Notropis, from the Greek, "back
keel"
cornuta, from the Latin, "horned"
Common name because it's, well, common.
Other common names include: Creek Shiner, Dace, Eastern
Shiner, Hornyhead, Redfin Shiner, Rough-head, Silver
Shiner, Silverside, Skipjack
Taxonomy:
Kingdom Animalia
Phylum Chordata, animals with a spinal chord
Subphylum Vertebrata, animals with a backbone
Superclass Osteichthyes, bony fishes
Class Actinopterygii, ray-finned and spiny rayed fishes
Subclass Neopterygii
Infraclass Teleostei
Superorder Ostariophysi
Order Cypriniformes, minnows and suckers
Family Cyprinidae, carps and minnows
Genus Notropis, the eastern shiners
Also known as Luxilus cornutus
Description:
One of the largest of the native
shiners.
Length:
Up to 8" , averaging 2½"-4"
Coloration:
Olive-green with bluish reflections
on back and sides belly silvery breeding males tinted
with pink over their entire body with dusky dorsal and
tail fins. one of a few minnow species having darkpigmentation
behind scattered scales, giving the appearance of missing
scales.
Body:
Stout and robust moderately
compressed laterally scales along the sides elevated,
diamond shaped in appearance broad mid-dorsal stripe,
along the top of the back, subtended by 2 or 3 narrow,
parallel stripes
dorsal and pelvic fins of 8 rays
pectoral fins of 15-17 rays
anal fin usually of 9 rays
Head:
Head, eyes, and mouth seem noticeably
large in comparison with similar species
mouth large, terminal, and nearly horizontal
no barbel
pharyngeal teeth strongly hooked, on sturdy arches in
a 2, 4-4, 2 pattern
Habitat:
Both warm and coldwater streams;
in the latter, it may be found in the same waters as
trout.
Prefer clear water and reach their greatest abundance
in the upstream tributaries of major interior rivers.
Foods:
Both plant and animal material.
Feeds at or just below the water surface, primarily
on insects.
Uses:
Common and readily caught, it
is a popular bait minnow
Important forage for game fish.
Takes a fly readily and is often caught by beginning
fly fishermen.
Reproduction:
Spawns in spring in riffles
over gravel, with some males excavating their own small
nests. Commonly spawns over the nest of a Creek Chub
or River Chub as well.
Hybridizes regularly with other minnow that spawn at
the same time.
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