Nondescript Silvery Minnow! Yay!
#1 Guest_NateTessler13_*
Posted 19 October 2007 - 09:01 AM
I'm working on an electrofishing crew in Illinois, and recently at one of our sites we collected something that we're not quite sure what it is. This forum has been one of the most helpful places for ID'ing the difficult ones. So, here's another.
The fish was collected at the confluence of Sandy Creek and the Illinois River, in Bedford, IL.
Mapquest Map of Bedford, IL
The creek had a bottom consisting of hardpan, sand, and muck. We literally sampled 500 meters upstream of the confluence all the way down to the mouth. The only other cyprinid collected at this site was a Bullhead Minnow (Pimephales vigilax). I'm not sure what this guy is though...
Here's my guesses...Pallid Shiner (although supposedly extremely rare), Spottail Shiner (although lacking the very spot at the base of the caudal that identifies it as a Spottail), Bullhead Minnow (unlikely), or a Silver Chub (didn't notice any barbs at the corners of the mouth).
Any help would be appreciated on this one.
-Nate-
#2 Guest_teleost_*
Posted 19 October 2007 - 09:15 AM
We found only one silver chub in the Illinois far upstream from this site. It had no barbels.
#3 Guest_fundulus_*
Posted 19 October 2007 - 10:33 AM
GhostShiner.jpg 4.14KB 0 downloads
#4 Guest_mzokan_*
Posted 19 October 2007 - 12:14 PM
#5 Guest_daveneely_*
Posted 19 October 2007 - 03:55 PM
That's a silver chub. The pale margin on the caudal with a dusky strip just above it is almost always present, and nothing else has that snout. There's a photo of one from the Missouri River at http://gallery.nanfa...G_5726.JPG.html
Notropis buchanani is a frail little minnow that looks like it would fall apart if you touched it, and has the grossly elevated anterior LL scales like N. volucellus, N. wickliffi, and N. cahabae. You can see the LL scales on your fish are just, well, normal.
cheers,
Dave
#6 Guest_Skipjack_*
Posted 19 October 2007 - 04:10 PM
#7 Guest_teleost_*
Posted 19 October 2007 - 04:22 PM
#8 Guest_Skipjack_*
Posted 19 October 2007 - 04:30 PM
Dave you rock!
I have to agree, Dave, send me some of your magic.
#9 Guest_daveneely_*
Posted 19 October 2007 - 05:21 PM
cheers,
Dave
#10 Guest_ashtonmj_*
Posted 19 October 2007 - 08:00 PM
#11 Guest_smbass_*
Posted 19 October 2007 - 09:05 PM
#12 Guest_Irate Mormon_*
Posted 19 October 2007 - 10:18 PM
I'll take your illustrations skills then...
I have a small collection of Dave Neely art Hopefully it will grow over the years. He's not merely an illustrator, dontcha know.
#13 Guest_NateTessler13_*
Posted 21 October 2007 - 05:04 PM
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