SAWFIN SHINER
SCIENTIFIC NAME: Notropis sp.
CHARACTERISTIC: The undescribed "sawfin shiner" is a slender species with a blunt, rounded snout. The lateral band in weakly developed throughout, expanding slightly near the caudal fin to form a small, indistinct spot. A russet spot on the anterior half of the dorsal, anal, pectoral, and pelvic fins is characteristic of males. The upper and lower parts of the caudal fin base are lightly flushed with orange, and the scales along the back are well pigmented. Life colors are straw yellow and silver. The "sawfin shiner" is sometimes confused with the mimic shiner, Notropis volucellus, but examining the dorsal fin rays will prevent this mistake: In the "sawfin shiner," only the first four or five dorsal fin rays are outlined with pigment. The "sawfin shiner" is aligned with the N. volucellus species group (Mayden, 1989) and most resembles N. spectrunculusand N. ozarcanus, species not known to Alabama.
ADULT SIZE: 1.4 to 2.6 in (35 to 65 mm)
DISTRIBUTION: The undescribed species is commonly found from the Tennessee River drainage in Alabama north to the Cumberland River drainage in Kentucky. Our collections were limited to the Paint Rock River system in Jackson County.
HABITAT AND BIOLOGY: The "sawfin shiner" occurs in clear, high-gradient streams flowing over rubble, cobble, gravel, bedrock, or clean sand. Individuals are most often found in flowing and eroded pools at the base of riffles or downstream of snags. Our collections indicate that spawning is probably from May through early July. Etnier and Starnes (1993) report that tuberculate males from mid-May through July in Tennessee. Otherwise, little is known about the biology of this species.
ETYMOLOGY:
Notropis means keeled back.
The copyrighted information above is from Fishes of Alabama and the Mobile Basin.
