Table of Contents
Overview
Comprehensive Description
Biology
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Page, L.M. and B.M. Burr 1991 A field guide to freshwater fishes of North America north of Mexico. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston. 432 p. (Ref. 5723)
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Distribution
Geographic Range
The rainbow darter is found in North America, throughout the Great Lakes region and the Ohio River valley extending into northern Alabama and as far west as Missouri and Arkansas (Kuehne and Barbour, 1983). Distinct populations of rainbow darters have also been discovered in the tributaries of the lower Mississippi river in southwest Mississippi and eastern Louisiana (Page, 1983). They are now also extending beyond their native range, invading areas like the Genesee river system of New York State; the means of this introduction remains unknown (Fuller, 1999).
Biogeographic Regions: nearctic (Introduced , Native )
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National Distribution
Canada
Origin: Native
Regularity: Regularly occurring
Currently: Present
Confidence: Confident
Type of Residency: Year-round
United States
Origin: Native
Regularity: Regularly occurring
Currently: Present
Confidence: Confident
Type of Residency: Year-round
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Global Range: Great Lakes and Mississippi River basins from Minnesota to southern Ontario and New York, south to northern Arkansas, northern Alabama, and northern Georgia; disjunct populations in eastern Louisiana and southwestern Mississippi and in the upper Potomac River drainage (Atlantic Slope), West Virginia; abundant (Page and Burr 1991).
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Page, L.M. and B.M. Burr 1991 A field guide to freshwater fishes of North America north of Mexico. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston. 432 p. (Ref. 5723)
http://www.fishbase.org/references/FBRefSummary.php?id=5723&speccode=2590
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Physical Description
Morphology
Physical Description
A small fish, the rainbow darter only grows to be 3 inches or 5 to 7 centimeters long (Williams and Gilbert, 2002). It can be a very brightly colored fish depending on the sex and whether it is breeding season. The base color is olive green and it is mottled with 6-10 brown saddles down the length of the body (Kuehne and Barbour, 1983). It also has up to 14 vertical stripes down the body, which are perhaps more clearly visible than the saddles. Females have brown stripes, while males usually have blue stripes that are separated by orange coloring. The first dorsal fins usually have red coloring close to the body with a blue fringe (Page, 1983). However, in female rainbow darters, this coloring is not very well developed and may simply appear as thin lines (Kuehne and Barbour, 1983). In fact, many of the fins on the rainbow darter are colored differently depending on the gender of the fish. For example, the second dorsal fins on male rainbow darters are usually blue with a red stripe running laterally down the middle, while females have thin black lines running laterally across the second dorsal fins. In addition, the pelvic fins of males are usually blue while female pelvic fins are usually clear. Finally, males may also have a red spot on the center of their blue anal fins. All other fins of the rainbow darter are usually clear with no coloring (Page, 1983). Rainbow darters have pointed snouts, and the greatest depth of their body usually occurs at the origin of the first dorsal fin (Williams and Gilbert, 2002).
Average length: 5-7 cm.
Other Physical Features: bilateral symmetry
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Size
Max. size
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Page, L.M. and B.M. Burr 1991 A field guide to freshwater fishes of North America north of Mexico. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston. 432 p. (Ref. 5723)
http://www.fishbase.org/references/FBRefSummary.php?id=5723&speccode=2590
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Hugg, D.O. 1996 MAPFISH georeferenced mapping database. Freshwater and estuarine fishes of North America. Life Science Software. Dennis O. and Steven Hugg, 1278 Turkey Point Road, Edgewater, Maryland, USA. (Ref. 12193)
http://www.fishbase.org/references/FBRefSummary.php?id=12193&speccode=3064
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Ecology
Habitat
Habitat
Rainbow darters prefer the fast-moving currents of shallow riffles in creeks and small rivers. They also have a preference for gravel or rocky-bottom streams (Williams and Gilbert, 2002). Typically, adult fish are found in faster and deeper running waters while younger rainbow darters are more common in slower, more shallow areas and pools (Page, 1983).
Habitat Regions: temperate ; freshwater
Aquatic Biomes: rivers and streams
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Environmental ranges
Depth range (m): 0.1 - 0.6
Graphical representation
Depth range (m): 0.1 - 0.6
Note: this information has not been validated. Check this *note*. Your feedback is most welcome.
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Habitat Type: Freshwater
Comments: Creeks and small to medium rivers, over gravel and rubble. Adults in fast and deep riffles, young in quiet shallow riffles and small pools. Eggs are laid in gravel in riffles.
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Migration
Non-Migrant: No. All populations of this species make significant seasonal migrations.
Locally Migrant: No. No populations of this species make local extended movements (generally less than 200 km) at particular times of the year (e.g., to breeding or wintering grounds, to hibernation sites).
Locally Migrant: No. No populations of this species make annual migrations of over 200 km.
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Trophic Strategy
Food Habits
Rainbow darters feed on a variety of aquatic insect larvae, small snails, and crayfish. They will also feed on various fish eggs, typically either minnow or lamprey eggs (Kuehne and Barbour, 1983). Rainbow darters are known to have a special preference for caddis fly larvae. However, it is important to note that the feeding habits of rainbow darters differ according to the time of day and also the time of year (Kuehne and Barbour, 1983).
Animal Foods: eggs; insects; terrestrial non-insect arthropods
Primary Diet: carnivore (Eats eggs, Insectivore , Eats non-insect arthropods)
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Martin, F.D. 1984 Diets of four sympatric species of Etheostoma (Pisces: Percidae) from southern Indiana: interspecific and intraspecific multiple comparisons. Environ. Biol. Fish. 11(2):113-120. (Ref. 38712)
http://www.fishbase.org/references/FBRefSummary.php?id=38712&speccode=3405
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Associations
Ecosystem Roles
Due to their low tolerance for poor quality water, the rainbow darter is used as an indicator species of stream health. (Paulson and Hatch, 2002). They act as a link in the food chain between low and higher trophic levels in stream ecosystems.
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Predation
The primay predators of the rainbow darter are larger freshwater fish (Paulson and Hatch, 2002).
Known Predators:
- burbots (Lota lota)
- stonecats (Notorus flavus)
- smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu)
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Known predators
Noturus flavus
Lota lota
Micropterus dolomieu
This list may not be complete but is based on published studies.
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Known prey organisms
non-insect arthropods
Arthropoda
Insecta
This list may not be complete but is based on published studies.
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Life History and Behavior
Behavior
Communication and Perception
The different coloration of males and females and changes in coloration during the reproductive season may serve as visual signals to other darters and likely play a role in sexual selection. Recent studies have suggested that rainbow darters show a decrease in activity levels when exposed to macerated skin from either other rainbow darters or a conspecific such as the yoke darter, Etheostoma juliae. The decrease in activity is a behavioral response to the threat of predation and most likely results from an alarm pheromone released through the skin of the macerated darter (Commens and Mathis, 1999).
Communication Channels: visual ; tactile ; chemical
Other Communication Modes: pheromones ; vibrations
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Life Cycle
Development
The eggs of rainbow darters are usually 1.6-1.9 mm in diameter, and typically hatch between 10-12 days after fertilization (Page, 1983).
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Balon, E.K. 1975 Reproductive guilds of fishes: a proposal and definition. J. Fish. Res. Board Can. 32(6):821-864. (Ref. 26281)
http://www.fishbase.org/references/FBRefSummary.php?id=26281&speccode=12252
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Life Expectancy
Lifespan/Longevity
Rainbow darters can live for up to four years (Williams and Gilbert, 2002).
Typical lifespan
Status: wild: 4 (high) years.
Average lifespan
Status: captivity: 3 years.
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Reproduction
Reproduction
Rainbow darters prefer to breed in water temperatures between 17-18°C (Kuehne and Barbour, 1983). Thus, depending on their regional location, these ideal-breeding conditions will occur at different times in the year (Page, 1983). Male fish are more brightly colored during the breeding season (Kuehne and Barbour, 1983). In addition, males exhibit territorial behavior in shallow riffles (25-55 cm deep) during the breeding season, scaring off other males through various intimidation tactics (Kuehne and Barbour, 1983). The larger the male, the more successful he is at intimidating his counterparts (Page, 1983). Females swim into a male territory from pools downstream (Kuehne and Barbour, 1983). Once in the riffle, the female buries the ventral half of her body into the gravel substrate and the male fish promptly mounts her. The two fish vibrate together; the male deposits his sperm and the female deposits 3-7 eggs in the gravel. The two fish then swim upstream a short distance and repeat the process over and over again for several days until the female lays about 800 eggs (Kuehne and Barbour, 1983).
Breeding season: When waters are 17-18°C
Range number of offspring: 800 eggs (high) .
Range time to hatching: 10 to 11.5 days.
Key Reproductive Features: iteroparous ; seasonal breeding ; sexual ; fertilization (External ); oviparous
Parental Investment: no parental involvement
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Spawns March-May in Mississippi (Heins et al., Copeia 1996:1005-1010), late March-May in Missouri, early April-early June in Michigan, April-June in Wisconsin, late February-late May in Arkansas (Hubbs 1985). Females lay eggs over several days. Eggs hatch in 10-12 days at 17-19 C (Page 1983, Kuehne and Barbour 1983). Age range of breeding females is 1-3 years (Bart and Page 1992).
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Molecular Biology and Genetics
Molecular Biology
Barcode data: Etheostoma caeruleum
There are 71 barcode sequences available from BOLD and GenBank. Below is a sequence of the barcode region Cytochrome oxidase subunit 1 (COI or COX1) from a member of the species. See the BOLD taxonomy browser for more complete information about this specimen and other sequences.
-- end --
Download FASTA File
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Statistics of barcoding coverage: Etheostoma caeruleum
Public Records: 71
Species: 83
Species With Barcodes: 1
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Conservation
Conservation Status
Conservation Status
Although many darter species are endangered or threatened, the rainbow darter is one of the most abundant of all the darter species (IUCN, 2002; Kuehne and Barbour, 1983).
US Migratory Bird Act: no special status
US Federal List: no special status
CITES: no special status
State of Michigan List: no special status
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National NatureServe Conservation Status
Canada
Rounded National Status Rank: N3 - Vulnerable
United States
Rounded National Status Rank: N5 - Secure
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NatureServe Conservation Status
Rounded Global Status Rank: G5 - Secure
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Threats
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IUCN 2006 2006 IUCN red list of threatened species. www.iucnredlist.org. Downloaded July 2006.
http://www.fishbase.org/references/FBRefSummary.php?id=57073
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Relevance to Humans and Ecosystems
Benefits
Economic Importance for Humans: Negative
The rainbow darter does not appear to have any adverse impact on humans.
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Wikipedia
Rainbow darter
The rainbow darter (Etheostoma caeruleum) is a native North American fish that can be found in small, fast-moving streams and small to medium-sized rivers. It grows to 2 inches (51 mm) to 3 inches (76 mm) in length.
The species is very sensitive to pollution and silt, staying in clean, pollution-free water.
Rainbow darters are easily identified by three dark spots on the back; also, they have blue and orange in their dorsal and anal fins.
Contents |
Life
The rainbow darter spawns in clean, rocky riffles from March through June. They live up to about four years of age.
The world's largest rainbow darter was caught in the summer of 2010 just outside of Barrie, Ontario, measuring 80 mm in length. It was released.
Geographic distribution
The rainbow darter, Etheostoma caeruleum, is a small, benthic freshwater fish. It can be found in many creeks and small to medium-sized rivers throughout North America. In particular, E. caeruleum is common throughout the eastern United States, specifically throughout the Great Lakes and Ohio River Valley regions. Its distribution extends south to northern parts of Alabama and as far west as Missouri and Arkansas (Kuehne and Barbour 2006).[1] This distribution has been suggested to be due to once existing glaciers and to E. caeruleum’s intolerance to brackish water. One study to examine the phylogeography of E. caeruleum and its colonization patterns found its distribution is greatly due to historic glaciations, and furthermore, due to distributions from drainages which have since then resulted in the current morphological diversity of the rainbow darter.[2] Geographically, E. caeruleum is one of the most abundant and common darter species.
Ecology
Some important ecological characteristics of the rainbow darter are its diet, predators, and microhabitat preferences. Etheostoma caeruleum is classified as insectivorous, feeding on small invertebrates such as insects and crayfish, but it has also been known to feed on some fish larvae. One study examined the diet of three darter species in Four-Mile Creek in Ohio, including E. caeruleum and found the rainbow darter survived primarily on trichopterans (i.e. caddis flies), having two feeding peaks: one in the morning and a second peak in the late afternoon or early evening.[3] Following the food web, the primary predators of E. caeruleum are larger freshwater fish such as burbots (Lota lota), stonecats (Notorus flavus), and smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu).[1]E. caeruleum, like many other darter species, has the ability to maintain position on the substrate in flowing water.[4] This unique characteristic plays a key role in its microhabitat preference. In regards to microhabitat, E. caeruleum has been shown to prefer creeks and rivers with rocky substrates and swift-moving riffles.[5] This microhabitat preference has been suggested to be due to oxygen levels in the water during season changes or simply due to other factors, such as feeding or shelter-related habitat preferences.[5] Because E. caeruleum has such a low tolerance for brackish water, human-induced changes such as pollution or sewer drainage could cause a huge negative impact on E. caeruleum abundance.
Life History
Darters have a wide range of life histories; however, size correlates with most life history characteristics. For example, larger darters grow faster, live longer, produce bigger clutches, and have longer reproductive spans.[6] Furthermore, mate selection by female darters is assumed to be common.[7] When examining the rainbow darter, Etheostoma caeruleum, life history traits were as follows: average size 45 mm, growth 32 mm, maximum age four years, and clutch size 82.[6] E. caeruleum mates during the spring, typically when water temperature is between 17 and 18°C, and they will leave their normal microhabitat in the rapids to congregate on pebbles where the stream leaves a pool to mate.[1] Once mates are selected, the fish mate repeatedly for several days until the female lays about 800 eggs.[1]E. caeruleum also displays group spawning, and the males tend to exhibit territorial behavior during the breeding season.[7]
Current management
Currently, the largest threat to Etheostoma caeruleum is run-off and pollution due to urbanization. For instance, one study found the development of an interstate highway negatively affected the abundance of several fish species, including E. caeruleum, because of decreasing quality of water of the nearby creek.[8] Therefore, monitoring run-off and pollution draining into rivers and streams is important due to the adverse effects they could have on fish communities. Currently, management plans consist of reducing nutrient, pesticide, and sediment loadings within such streams.[9] Furthermore, this same study suggests conservation practices should be a combination of both physical habitat monitoring and water chemistry monitoring, because it would benefit fish communities within headwater streams more than just implementing one conservation practice or the other.[9] Although broad management plans are in place for many rivers and streams and their fish communities as a whole, no current management plans in place are specifically designed for E. caeruleum. The lack of protection is probably because it is one of the most abundant darter species. Although the rainbow darter may be abundant now, many other darter species have become endangered or extinct.
Management recommendations
Etheostoma caeruleum does not currently have any management plans in place designed specifically for it, and because of its sensitivity to water purity and it is a primary food source for many larger freshwater fish, a better management plan is needed to help maintain the healthy freshwater ecosystems it occupies. To monitor and manage E. caeruleum, census data are needed. Once an estimate for E. caeruleum abundance is determined, monitoring the annual number of species would show influxes or a declines in the number of rainbow darters compared to its average abundance. Management plans should include monitoring watershed from nearby urban areas (i.e. monitoring chemical run-off from agriculture or plants) and monitoring overfishing (since rainbow darters are a primary source of prey for many larger freshwater fish, it is important to keep the balance). Invasive species could also potentially pose a threat to the rainbow darter, and if they were to upset the balance of the freshwater ecosystem, measures would need to be made to remove such species.
References
- National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Fishes, Whales & Dolphins. Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.. October 1998. ISBN 0-394-53405-0.
- "Etheostoma caeruleum". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. http://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=168378. Retrieved 30 January 2006.
- Froese, Rainer, and Daniel Pauly, eds. (2005). "Etheostoma caeruleum" in FishBase. 10 2005 version.
References
- ^ a b c d Kuehne, R., R. Barbour. 1983. The American Darters. Lexington, Kentucky: The University Press of Kentucky.
- ^ Ray, J. M, R.M. Wood, and A.M. Simons. 2006. Phylogeography and post-glacial colonization patterns of the rainbow darter, Etheostoma caeruluem (Teleostei: Percidae). Journal of Biogeography (33): 1550-1558.
- ^ Adamson, S.W. and T.E. Wissing. 1977. Food habits and feeding periodicity of the Rainbow, Fantail, and Banded darters in Four-Mile Creek. Ohio Journal of Science (77): 164-169.
- ^ Carlson, R.L and G.V. Lauder. 2010. Living on the Bottom: Kinematics of Benthic Station-Holding in Darter Fishes (Percidae: Etheostomatinae). Journal of Morphology (271): 25-35.
- ^ a b Harding, J.M, A. J. Burky, and C.M. Way. 1998. Habitat Preferences of the Rainbow Darter, Etheostoma caeruleum, with Regard to Microhabitat Velocity Shelters. Copeia (4): 988-997.
- ^ a b Paine, M.D. 1990. Life history tactics of darters (Percidae: Etheostomatiini) and their relationship with body size, reproductive behavior, latitude and rarity. Journal of Fish Biology (37): 473-488.
- ^ a b Fuller, R.C. 2003. Disentangling female mate choice and male competition in the Rainbow Darter, Etheostoma caeruleum. Copeia (1): 138-148.
- ^ Ritzi, C.M., B. L. Everson, J. B. Foster, J. J. Sheets, and D. W. Sparks. 2004. Urban ichthyology: changes in the fish community along an urban-rural creek in Indiana. Proceedings of the Indiana Academy of Science (113): 42-52.
- ^ a b Smiley, P.C., R. B. Gillespie, K. W. King, and C. Huang. 2009. Management implications of the relationships between water chemistry and fishes within channelized headwater streams in the Midwestern United States. Ecohydrology (2): 294-302.
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Unreviewed
Names and Taxonomy
Taxonomy
Comments: Regarded as conspecific with E. SPECTABILE until 1930. Population in southwestern Mississippi and southeastern Louisiana may represent a separate species (F. McCormick, cited by Heins et al., Copeia 1996:1006).
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