Post by Eugene on Jan 11, 2008 14:27:00 GMT -5
The following was edited and updated from an article originally run in Ohio Smallmouth News, Sept. 2004, 12(4).
Ohio’s fish families, cont.
by Eugene C. Braig IV
17. Aphredoderidae, pirate perch: This is another single-member family. The pirate perch (Aphredoderus sayanus) is superficially similar to trout-perches, but has the rather alarming-sounding feature of its vent being positioned on the isthmus between the gill chambers (i.e., at its “throat”). Pirate perch may have been extirpated from Ohio waters; in spite of a short-lived effort at transplantation and intense collection efforts by The Ohio State University Museum of Biological Diversity and the Ohio EPA, it hasn’t been sampled here in decades.
18. Gadidae, cods: All the many cods are marine fishes except for the burbot (Lota lota) that occurs in freshwaters around the northern hemisphere, including Lake Erie. The burbot has two soft-rayed dorsal fins, the fist short and the second very long, and a single barbel at the tip of the chin. They frequent extremely deep water where there is oxygen to support them. Burbot can exceed 2½’ in Ohio. Some recent authors have been splitting burbot and hakes into a separate family (Lotidae). I tend to favor lumping and hope the greater family of Gadidae stands.
19. Fundulidae, topminnows and killifish: These are smallish fishes with flattened backs and upturned mouths, specialized to forage along the surface. They have a single dorsal fin. The blackstripe topminnow (Fundulus notatus) is very common to marshes and sluggish waters in streams; the western banded killifish (Fundulus diaphanus) is endangered in Ohio.
20. Poeciliidae, livebearers: As the name implies, female livebearers carry their eggs and hatch them internally to give live birth. The male is equipped with a modified anal fin called a gonopodium to inseminate the female. No livebearers are native to Ohio, but for a while the mosquitofish (Gambusia affinis) was introduced to waters around Toledo and in Licking County to control insect larvae in stagnant backwaters. They aren’t very tolerant of our winters and don’t appear to persist unless populations are maintained through stocking.
21. Atherinidae, silversides: Ohio’s only representative of this family is the brook silverside (Labidesthes sicculus). It has two dorsal fins: the first one short with very flexible spines and the second longer and comprised of soft rays. The brook silverside is small (to ca. 4”), silvery, and translucent, with an almost beak-like snout. This family is relatively closely related to the flying fishes. They are prone to move together in large schools. I have seen massive groups of them moving as one and leaping from the water as a sleek, silvery explosion from the old canal reservoirs of Coshocton; their synchronization is breathtaking.
22. Gasterosteidae, sticklebacks: Sticklebacks are so named because their spines are isolated and distinct rather than being gathered into a single spinous dorsal fin; these independent spines are followed by an ordinary dorsal fin of soft rays. They lack scales but can have a few scute-like bony plates. They are fairly closely related to (brace yourself!) seahorses. You can see this relationship in the way they propel themselves from the pectoral fins. Sticklebacks have very complex nest-building and spawning behaviors. They favor rather cold water. Ohio’s only native is the brook stickleback (Culea inconstans). The brook stickleback is tiny (rarely exceeding 2”).
23. Cottidae, sculpins: This family has a great many marine representatives, but only the mottled sculpin (Cottus bairdi) is native to Ohio. These are small coldwater predators common to Ohio’s streams and Lake Erie. They have massive pectoral fins, both spinous and soft-rayed dorsal fins, and lack scales. They make interesting aquarium pets, but only if you have the capacity to cool the water; they won’t tolerate much above 65º F or so. Early documentation of other sculpin species in Ohio was probably the result of misidentification. Recently, a few larval deepwater sculpin (Myoxocephalus thompsoni) were taken in an Erie sample. They were probably washed down from Huron/St. Clair and not from a resident Ohio population.
24. Moronidae, temperate basses: This family has gone through several recent reclassifications and names. It was sometimes lumped with similar southern-hemisphere fishes (Percichthyidae); the splitters seem to have the upper hand now in separating the two families. These are true basses having distinct spinous and soft-rayed dorsal fins, ctenoid scales, fairly compressed sides, etc. They are schooling pelagic predators and often follow schools of pelagic baitfish without mercy. Ohio’s only native is the white bass (Morone chrysops), common in Lake Erie and our larger streams, and is an important game fish. The smaller white perch (M. amaericana) is an Atlantic invader to Erie via the canal system. Striped bass (M. saxatilis) and hybrids (M. saxatilis X chrysops) have been stocked as game in some Ohio reservoirs with large populations of gizzard shad.
25. Centrarchidae, sunfishes: This is, of course, where our old friend the smallmouth bass falls. The centrarchids have compressed sides, ctenoid scales, and spinous and soft-rayed dorsal fins that are fused to varying degrees. In Ohio, this family is comprised of the sunfishes (Lepomis spp.) including bluegill (L. macrochirus), crappies (Pomoxis spp.), black basses (Micropterus spp.), and, for good measure, the rock bass (Ambloplites rupestris). Under stressful conditions in isolated systems, the Lepomis spp. will hybridize pretty freely. Some sunfishes are spectacularly colored with rich metallic blues, pearly whites, and blazing oranges/reds; small species like the orangespotted sunfish (L. humilis) make gorgeous aquarium pets and are not fussy eaters. Justified or not, the largemouth bass (M. salmoides) is probably the world’s most popular game fish (personally, I feel M. dolomieu is the superior Micropterus). All these taxa are important game/pan fish. So much has been written about the lot that I don’t feel I need to offer too much detail here.
26. Percidae, perches: These are the true perches ranging from the tiniest darters (Etheostoma and Percina spp.) to the massive, toothy walleye (Sander vitreus). Perches have distinct spinous and soft-rayed dorsal fins and ctenoid scales. Their pelvic and anal fins—and sometimes their gill covers—also carry prominent spines. Yellow perch (Perca flavescens) is one of Ohio’s last important commercial fisheries. They are important pan fish and are mighty tasty. A slightly smaller, flow-favoring relative of the walleye, the sauger (Sander canadense), is often hybridized with walleye; the resultant saugeye (S. vitreus X canadense) is a very important put-and-take recreational fishery in Ohio reservoirs and tailwaters. Coolwater darters, especially the Etheostoma spp., are amongst the most beautiful fishes Ohio can offer. They make interesting aquarium pets but are fussy eaters, favoring small live invertebrates, and may not display their fabulous spring colors unless their water is seasonally chilled. Be mindful if you intend to collect darters as pets; some species are protected on Ohio’s endangered and threatened lists.
27. Sciaenidae, drums: Most drums are marine and many are important game fish. There is one oft-maligned freshwater representative in Lake Erie and Ohio’s larger, slower streams, appropriately named freshwater drum (Applodinotus grunniens); its other very common common name is sheepshead. They have somewhat fused spinous and soft dorsal fins, ctenoid scales, a distinctive sloping nape (i.e., forehead), and a subterminal mouth. This mouth serves their habit of selective benthivory (bottom feeding) very well. They are voracious molluscivores with a real fondness for munching invasive dreissenid mussels (i.e., zebra and quagga mussels) in Lake Erie. To crush mussel shells, their innermost gill arch is modified to carry powerful, molar-like teeth. Say what you will, they get mighty big in Ohio (sometimes in excess of 3’) and are a lot of fun on rod and reel!
28. Gobiidae, gobies: This is a massive and diverse family with no Ohio natives. Most are marine. One species has firmly established itself in Lake Erie, the round goby (Neogobius melanostomus). Gobies are similar to sculpins (if only sculpins had scales). They have both spinous and soft dorsal fins. The most distinguishing characteristic of gobies is that their paired pelvic fins are fused into a single suction cup-like disc. They were likely introduced to Erie via the ballast water of ocean-crossing freighters. They were first observed in Lake St. Clair in 1990. Early on, they established around Cleveland; by 1998 they had colonized throughout the lake. They have voracity for small benthic things including young dreissenid mussels, which share their home range. This also includes smallmouth bass eggs and fry. Round goby pose little threat to a guarded smallmouth bass nest, but can significantly reduce eggs and fry when the male is removed by inclement weather or angling, even if the male only is removed briefly and released to return to the nest. Round goby are also supplanting native darters and mottled sculpin populations in Erie. Another goby, the tubenose goby (Proterorhinus marmoratus), has been seen in Erie, but doesn’t appear to have established a population here. It has been seen in more frequency in recent years.
That’s the lot of Ohio’s fish families. I hope you find something interesting or perhaps even useful in the above. Time to buy a seine, start a checklist, and collect ’em all, eh? Now hit the water and enjoy!
Some online resources
• Fishbase: www.fishbase.org/
• The Native Fish Conservancy: www.nativefish.org/
• The North American Native Fishes Association: www.nanfa.org/
• The Ohio Department of Natural Resources-Division of Wildlife: www.ohiodnr.com/wildlife/ (check out the publication list for fact sheets on a great many Ohio fishes)
• Ohio EPA-Biological and Water Quality Monitoring & Assessment: www.epa.state.oh.us/dsw/bioassess/ohstrat.html
• Ohio Sea Grant research: ohioseagrant.osu.edu/research/
Some recommended references
• Ohio Division of Wildlife. 2001. Ohio Fish Identification Guide, Pub. 334. Ohio Department of Natural Resources-Division of Wildlife, Columbus.
• Ohio Division of Wildlife. 2006. Sport Fish of Ohio Identification, Pub. 334 (406). Ohio Department of Natural Resources-Division of Wildlife, Columbus.
• Page, L.M. & B.M. Burr. 1991. Freshwater Fishes: The Peterson Field Guide Series, no. 42. Houghton Mifflin Co., Boston.
• Quinn, J.R. 1990. Our Native Fishes: The Aquarium Hobbyist's Guide to Observing, Collecting, and Keeping Them. W.W. Norton & Co., New York.
• Quinn, J.R. 1994. The Fascinating Freshwater Fish Book: How to Catch, Keep, and Observe Your Own Native Fish. John Wiley & Sons, Inc., New York.
• Smith, C.L. 1994. Fish Watching: An Outdoor Guide to Freshwater Fishes. Cornell University Press, Ithaca, NY.
• Trautman, M.B. 1981. The Fishes of Ohio, 2nd ed. The Ohio State University Press, Columbus.
PS: The only fish with a capitalized common name is not an Ohio native. It’s the Dolly Varden (Salvelinus malma).
Ohio’s fish families, cont.
by Eugene C. Braig IV
17. Aphredoderidae, pirate perch: This is another single-member family. The pirate perch (Aphredoderus sayanus) is superficially similar to trout-perches, but has the rather alarming-sounding feature of its vent being positioned on the isthmus between the gill chambers (i.e., at its “throat”). Pirate perch may have been extirpated from Ohio waters; in spite of a short-lived effort at transplantation and intense collection efforts by The Ohio State University Museum of Biological Diversity and the Ohio EPA, it hasn’t been sampled here in decades.
18. Gadidae, cods: All the many cods are marine fishes except for the burbot (Lota lota) that occurs in freshwaters around the northern hemisphere, including Lake Erie. The burbot has two soft-rayed dorsal fins, the fist short and the second very long, and a single barbel at the tip of the chin. They frequent extremely deep water where there is oxygen to support them. Burbot can exceed 2½’ in Ohio. Some recent authors have been splitting burbot and hakes into a separate family (Lotidae). I tend to favor lumping and hope the greater family of Gadidae stands.
19. Fundulidae, topminnows and killifish: These are smallish fishes with flattened backs and upturned mouths, specialized to forage along the surface. They have a single dorsal fin. The blackstripe topminnow (Fundulus notatus) is very common to marshes and sluggish waters in streams; the western banded killifish (Fundulus diaphanus) is endangered in Ohio.
20. Poeciliidae, livebearers: As the name implies, female livebearers carry their eggs and hatch them internally to give live birth. The male is equipped with a modified anal fin called a gonopodium to inseminate the female. No livebearers are native to Ohio, but for a while the mosquitofish (Gambusia affinis) was introduced to waters around Toledo and in Licking County to control insect larvae in stagnant backwaters. They aren’t very tolerant of our winters and don’t appear to persist unless populations are maintained through stocking.
21. Atherinidae, silversides: Ohio’s only representative of this family is the brook silverside (Labidesthes sicculus). It has two dorsal fins: the first one short with very flexible spines and the second longer and comprised of soft rays. The brook silverside is small (to ca. 4”), silvery, and translucent, with an almost beak-like snout. This family is relatively closely related to the flying fishes. They are prone to move together in large schools. I have seen massive groups of them moving as one and leaping from the water as a sleek, silvery explosion from the old canal reservoirs of Coshocton; their synchronization is breathtaking.
22. Gasterosteidae, sticklebacks: Sticklebacks are so named because their spines are isolated and distinct rather than being gathered into a single spinous dorsal fin; these independent spines are followed by an ordinary dorsal fin of soft rays. They lack scales but can have a few scute-like bony plates. They are fairly closely related to (brace yourself!) seahorses. You can see this relationship in the way they propel themselves from the pectoral fins. Sticklebacks have very complex nest-building and spawning behaviors. They favor rather cold water. Ohio’s only native is the brook stickleback (Culea inconstans). The brook stickleback is tiny (rarely exceeding 2”).
23. Cottidae, sculpins: This family has a great many marine representatives, but only the mottled sculpin (Cottus bairdi) is native to Ohio. These are small coldwater predators common to Ohio’s streams and Lake Erie. They have massive pectoral fins, both spinous and soft-rayed dorsal fins, and lack scales. They make interesting aquarium pets, but only if you have the capacity to cool the water; they won’t tolerate much above 65º F or so. Early documentation of other sculpin species in Ohio was probably the result of misidentification. Recently, a few larval deepwater sculpin (Myoxocephalus thompsoni) were taken in an Erie sample. They were probably washed down from Huron/St. Clair and not from a resident Ohio population.
24. Moronidae, temperate basses: This family has gone through several recent reclassifications and names. It was sometimes lumped with similar southern-hemisphere fishes (Percichthyidae); the splitters seem to have the upper hand now in separating the two families. These are true basses having distinct spinous and soft-rayed dorsal fins, ctenoid scales, fairly compressed sides, etc. They are schooling pelagic predators and often follow schools of pelagic baitfish without mercy. Ohio’s only native is the white bass (Morone chrysops), common in Lake Erie and our larger streams, and is an important game fish. The smaller white perch (M. amaericana) is an Atlantic invader to Erie via the canal system. Striped bass (M. saxatilis) and hybrids (M. saxatilis X chrysops) have been stocked as game in some Ohio reservoirs with large populations of gizzard shad.
25. Centrarchidae, sunfishes: This is, of course, where our old friend the smallmouth bass falls. The centrarchids have compressed sides, ctenoid scales, and spinous and soft-rayed dorsal fins that are fused to varying degrees. In Ohio, this family is comprised of the sunfishes (Lepomis spp.) including bluegill (L. macrochirus), crappies (Pomoxis spp.), black basses (Micropterus spp.), and, for good measure, the rock bass (Ambloplites rupestris). Under stressful conditions in isolated systems, the Lepomis spp. will hybridize pretty freely. Some sunfishes are spectacularly colored with rich metallic blues, pearly whites, and blazing oranges/reds; small species like the orangespotted sunfish (L. humilis) make gorgeous aquarium pets and are not fussy eaters. Justified or not, the largemouth bass (M. salmoides) is probably the world’s most popular game fish (personally, I feel M. dolomieu is the superior Micropterus). All these taxa are important game/pan fish. So much has been written about the lot that I don’t feel I need to offer too much detail here.
26. Percidae, perches: These are the true perches ranging from the tiniest darters (Etheostoma and Percina spp.) to the massive, toothy walleye (Sander vitreus). Perches have distinct spinous and soft-rayed dorsal fins and ctenoid scales. Their pelvic and anal fins—and sometimes their gill covers—also carry prominent spines. Yellow perch (Perca flavescens) is one of Ohio’s last important commercial fisheries. They are important pan fish and are mighty tasty. A slightly smaller, flow-favoring relative of the walleye, the sauger (Sander canadense), is often hybridized with walleye; the resultant saugeye (S. vitreus X canadense) is a very important put-and-take recreational fishery in Ohio reservoirs and tailwaters. Coolwater darters, especially the Etheostoma spp., are amongst the most beautiful fishes Ohio can offer. They make interesting aquarium pets but are fussy eaters, favoring small live invertebrates, and may not display their fabulous spring colors unless their water is seasonally chilled. Be mindful if you intend to collect darters as pets; some species are protected on Ohio’s endangered and threatened lists.
27. Sciaenidae, drums: Most drums are marine and many are important game fish. There is one oft-maligned freshwater representative in Lake Erie and Ohio’s larger, slower streams, appropriately named freshwater drum (Applodinotus grunniens); its other very common common name is sheepshead. They have somewhat fused spinous and soft dorsal fins, ctenoid scales, a distinctive sloping nape (i.e., forehead), and a subterminal mouth. This mouth serves their habit of selective benthivory (bottom feeding) very well. They are voracious molluscivores with a real fondness for munching invasive dreissenid mussels (i.e., zebra and quagga mussels) in Lake Erie. To crush mussel shells, their innermost gill arch is modified to carry powerful, molar-like teeth. Say what you will, they get mighty big in Ohio (sometimes in excess of 3’) and are a lot of fun on rod and reel!
28. Gobiidae, gobies: This is a massive and diverse family with no Ohio natives. Most are marine. One species has firmly established itself in Lake Erie, the round goby (Neogobius melanostomus). Gobies are similar to sculpins (if only sculpins had scales). They have both spinous and soft dorsal fins. The most distinguishing characteristic of gobies is that their paired pelvic fins are fused into a single suction cup-like disc. They were likely introduced to Erie via the ballast water of ocean-crossing freighters. They were first observed in Lake St. Clair in 1990. Early on, they established around Cleveland; by 1998 they had colonized throughout the lake. They have voracity for small benthic things including young dreissenid mussels, which share their home range. This also includes smallmouth bass eggs and fry. Round goby pose little threat to a guarded smallmouth bass nest, but can significantly reduce eggs and fry when the male is removed by inclement weather or angling, even if the male only is removed briefly and released to return to the nest. Round goby are also supplanting native darters and mottled sculpin populations in Erie. Another goby, the tubenose goby (Proterorhinus marmoratus), has been seen in Erie, but doesn’t appear to have established a population here. It has been seen in more frequency in recent years.
That’s the lot of Ohio’s fish families. I hope you find something interesting or perhaps even useful in the above. Time to buy a seine, start a checklist, and collect ’em all, eh? Now hit the water and enjoy!
Some online resources
• Fishbase: www.fishbase.org/
• The Native Fish Conservancy: www.nativefish.org/
• The North American Native Fishes Association: www.nanfa.org/
• The Ohio Department of Natural Resources-Division of Wildlife: www.ohiodnr.com/wildlife/ (check out the publication list for fact sheets on a great many Ohio fishes)
• Ohio EPA-Biological and Water Quality Monitoring & Assessment: www.epa.state.oh.us/dsw/bioassess/ohstrat.html
• Ohio Sea Grant research: ohioseagrant.osu.edu/research/
Some recommended references
• Ohio Division of Wildlife. 2001. Ohio Fish Identification Guide, Pub. 334. Ohio Department of Natural Resources-Division of Wildlife, Columbus.
• Ohio Division of Wildlife. 2006. Sport Fish of Ohio Identification, Pub. 334 (406). Ohio Department of Natural Resources-Division of Wildlife, Columbus.
• Page, L.M. & B.M. Burr. 1991. Freshwater Fishes: The Peterson Field Guide Series, no. 42. Houghton Mifflin Co., Boston.
• Quinn, J.R. 1990. Our Native Fishes: The Aquarium Hobbyist's Guide to Observing, Collecting, and Keeping Them. W.W. Norton & Co., New York.
• Quinn, J.R. 1994. The Fascinating Freshwater Fish Book: How to Catch, Keep, and Observe Your Own Native Fish. John Wiley & Sons, Inc., New York.
• Smith, C.L. 1994. Fish Watching: An Outdoor Guide to Freshwater Fishes. Cornell University Press, Ithaca, NY.
• Trautman, M.B. 1981. The Fishes of Ohio, 2nd ed. The Ohio State University Press, Columbus.
PS: The only fish with a capitalized common name is not an Ohio native. It’s the Dolly Varden (Salvelinus malma).