6 replies to this topic

[WheelsOC]

Another little creek in the Upper Savannah watershed. Video and some still-frames, but no specimen tank. Upping my videography game from "Dunk Phone Into Water," this time I'm using an Olympus TG-5 on a stick!

 

I see there are several of what look like the yellowfin shiners from last time, swimming out in the open. Up against the rocks, it looks like there's a different minnow species hanging out. The dark stripe is less distinct and there doesn't seem to be much of a counter-shading light bar above it, unlike with the shiners. Some sort of young chub, maybe?

 

Video: https://youtu.be/wIJinbIymnM

 

Some stills from the original source, to avoid YouTube compression. The mystery minnows are the pair on the right, next to the rock. Got a profile and snout in one shot and a nice flick of the caudal fin in the next. Not embedding for dimension and filesize reasons:

 

1: https://i.imgur.com/Hnc3b4W.png

 

2: https://i.imgur.com/KpsJBAX.png

 

And another capture with more of the fish out in the open:

 

https://i.imgur.com/SUCC86A.png

 

 

(I'm using external hosting for now, but is it preferred etiquette to upload the images as attachments?)

[UncleWillie]

Congrats on moving onto the next level of videography!  You have the yellowfins correct.  I love seeing the variation in yellowfins from drainage to drainage (yellow/orange/white fins and heads).  Your mystery minnows are indeed chubs.  There are several bluehead chubs (Nocomis leptocephalus) of various sizes in your video, and one hanging out in the rear right part of your first photo.  The larger fish in the the first photo is a creek chub (Semotilus atromaculatus).

[WheelsOC]

Thanks UncleWillie.
I thought Creek Chub had to have a big dark spot at the front of the dorsal fin? I went back to my video and didn't see a spot there.

[Michael Wolfe]

I saw yellowfins for sure and I think all the bigger fish up against/under the rock were bluehead chubs.  I didnt see the creek chub either.

 

Not sure if there was another minnow mixed in there, but there was one that seemed to be smaller and very light colored that makes me wonder.

[FishyJackson]

You may think you have these I'D now wheels....

But wait 2 to 5 years then look again. The bluehead chubs will turn out to be redcrotch chubs or something like that, and the others will likely be notropis hudsonius.

[WheelsOC]

Oh yeah, present certainty is no guarantee against future Splitters! Puttin' the "complex" in "species complex."

[UncleWillie]

I went back to the video to watch to watch that larger fish, and yall are right - also a bluehead chub.  I like seeing that subtle orange-red fins on mediums sized blueheads.