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Key Feature for Emerald Vs Comely Shiner


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#1 BassAtMidnight

BassAtMidnight
  • NANFA Guest
  • Maryland

Posted 26 May 2018 - 07:38 PM

Hello all, 

 

I am looking at some preserved shiner specimens and was wondering if anyone had some key features they look for when comparing Emerald Shiners to Comely Shiners. Any help would be great thanks!!   



#2 gerald

gerald
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  • Wake Forest, North Carolina

Posted 29 May 2018 - 08:34 AM

See Freshwater Fishes of VA (Jenlins & Burkhead 1994) key on pg 270 and species accounts on pg 397-401.  N. rubellus could also be confused with them.  Do amoenus and atherinoides ranges overlap?  Or has one been introduced into the range of the other? 


Gerald Pottern
-----------------------
Hangin' on the Neuse
"Taxonomy is the diaper used to organize the mess of evolution into discrete packages" - M.Sandel


#3 BassAtMidnight

BassAtMidnight
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  • Maryland

Posted 13 June 2018 - 01:41 PM

Thank you for the reply. The first few rays of the dorsal extend a little further on the atherinoides, while I was looking for something a little better, it seems to work pretty well. Thanks for the recommendation, that book is on the list but its a bit pricey. I am not sure, off hand, whether their native ranges overlap, but they certainly have an introduced range that overlaps. Thanks! 



#4 gerald

gerald
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  • Wake Forest, North Carolina

Posted 13 June 2018 - 04:32 PM

Key characters in the VA book are all based on pigment of preserved specimens (lateral stripe, predorsal stripe, lateral line pores); may be too variable for use on live fish.  Snelson reported amoenus x atherinoides hybrids in the NY Finger Lakes area (1968, referenced in Jenkins & Burkhead).  Menhinick (1991) shows a straighter head profile on amoenus (slightly more rounded in atherinoides), and 15 pre-dorsal circumf scales above lat line in amoenus vs 13 in atherinoides.  Not much difference, really.


Gerald Pottern
-----------------------
Hangin' on the Neuse
"Taxonomy is the diaper used to organize the mess of evolution into discrete packages" - M.Sandel





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