Fantail Darter
Etheostoma flabellare
Blackbanded Darter
Percina nigrofasciata
About
A common little darter of southeastern rivers, this fish spends its life low over sand and gravel, shifting its colors to match the streambed around it.
Appearance
Its colour changes with the habitat around it, helping the fish blend in with the sand or gravel it sits on. During the breeding season, males turn a greenish-blue colour.
Habitat
Lives in headwaters and medium-sized rivers of the southeastern United States, over sandy or gravelly bottoms, often near patches of aquatic plants. It favors stretches of stream with mixed depths and some current.
Behaviour
Feeds on small insect larvae such as mayflies, midges, and caddisflies, taking nothing larger than about 5 mm. It spawns between February and June on sandy stream bottoms; the male mounts the female from behind during mating. Eggs get no parental care once laid, and larger fish such as bass prey on the darter itself.
Log it in Into the Blue
Describe what you saw and we name it, then keep every species you find in your Oceandex.
