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Home/Species/ Rainbow Darter

Etheostoma caeruleum

Storer, 1845

Rainbow Darter

G5Secure Found in 9 roadless areas NatureServe Explorer →
G5SecureGlobal Rank
Least concernIUCN
Identity
Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.103974
Element CodeAFCQC02090
Record TypeSPECIES
ClassificationSpecies
Classification StatusStandard
Name CategoryVertebrate Animal
IUCNLeast concern
Endemicoccurs (regularly, as a native taxon) in multiple nations
KingdomAnimalia
PhylumCraniata
ClassActinopterygii
OrderPerciformes
FamilyPercidae
GenusEtheostoma
Synonyms
Poecilichthys caeruleus(Storer, 1845)
Other Common Names
Dard arc-en-ciel (FR)
Concept Reference
Robins, C.R., R.M. Bailey, C.E. Bond, J.R. Brooker, E.A. Lachner, R.N. Lea, and W.B. Scott. 1991. Common and scientific names of fishes from the United States and Canada. American Fisheries Society, Special Publication 20. 183 pp.
Taxonomic Comments
Regarded as conspecific with Etheostoma spectabile until 1930. Population in southwestern Mississippi and southeastern Louisiana may represent a separate species (F. McCormick, cited by Heins et al., Copeia 1996:1006).
Conservation Status
Rank MethodExpertise without calculation
Review Date2011-12-07
Change Date1996-09-23
Edition Date2011-12-07
Edition AuthorsHammerson, G.
Range Extent200,000-2,500,000 square km (about 80,000-1,000,000 square miles)
Number of Occurrences81 - 300
Range Extent Comments
Range includes the Great Lakes and Mississippi River basins from Minnesota to southern Ontario and New York, south to northern Arkansas, northern Alabama, and northern Georgia; disjunct populations occur along the lower Mississippi River in eastern Louisiana and southwestern Mississippi and in the upper Potomac River drainage (Atlantic Slope), West Virginia; abundant (Page and Burr 2011).
Occurrences Comments
This species is represented by a large number of occurrences (subpopulations).
Threat Impact Comments
No major threats are known.
Ecology & Habitat

Habitat

Habitat includes gravel and rubble riffles of creeks and small to medium rivers (Page and Burr 2011). Adults occur in fast and deep riffles, young in quiet shallow riffles and small pools. Eggs are laid in gravel in riffles.

Reproduction

Spawns March-May in Mississippi (Heins et al., Copeia 1996:1005-1010), late March-May in Missouri, early April-early June in Michigan, April-June in Wisconsin, late February-late May in Arkansas (Hubbs 1985). Females lay eggs over several days. Eggs hatch in 10-12 days at 17-19 C (Page 1983, Kuehne and Barbour 1983). Age range of breeding females is 1-3 years (Bart and Page 1992).
Other Nations (2)
CanadaN4
ProvinceRankNative
OntarioS4Yes
QuebecSNRYes
United StatesN5
ProvinceRankNative
MinnesotaSNRYes
IllinoisS4Yes
IndianaS5Yes
GeorgiaS3Yes
MarylandSNANo
MissouriSNRYes
ArkansasS4Yes
VirginiaS2Yes
TennesseeS5Yes
LouisianaS2Yes
AlabamaS5Yes
PennsylvaniaS5Yes
MississippiS4Yes
New YorkS3Yes
OhioS5Yes
IowaS4Yes
WisconsinS5Yes
West VirginiaS4Yes
KentuckyS4Yes
MichiganS4Yes
Threat Assessments
ThreatScopeSeverityTiming
No known threats———

—

Roadless Areas (9)
Arkansas (2)
AreaForestAcres
Clifty CanyonOzark-St. Francis National Forest1,963
Richland CreekOzark-St. Francis National Forest571
Kentucky (1)
AreaForestAcres
WolfpenDaniel Boone National Forest2,835
Missouri (1)
AreaForestAcres
Irish Rare II Study AreaMark Twain National Forest1,226
Virginia (1)
AreaForestAcres
Peters Mountain Addition A (VA)Jefferson National Forest1,268
West Virginia (4)
AreaForestAcres
Little MountainMonongahela National Forest8,172
Marlin MountainMonongahela National Forest9,344
Middle MountainMonongahela National Forest19,020
Peters Mountain Addition A (WV)Jefferson National Forest343
References (36)
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  2. Bart, H. L., Jr., and L. M. Page. 1992. The influence of size and phylogeny on life history variation in North American percids. Pages 553-572 in R.L. Mayden, editor. Systematics, historical ecology, and North American freshwater fishes. Stanford University Press, Stanford, California. xxvi + 969 pp.
  3. Becker, G. C. 1983. Fishes of Wisconsin. University of Wisconsin Press, Madison. 1,052 pp.
  4. Burr, B. M., and M. L. Warren, Jr. 1986a. Distributional atlas of Kentucky fishes. Kentucky Nature Preserves Commission, Scientific and Technical Series No. 4, Frankfort, Kentucky. 398 pp.
  5. Burr, Brooks M. (Department of Zoology, Southern Illinois University) and Donovan B. Henry. 2000. Review and annotation of fish watershed distribution maps. Review requested by Anthony E. Zammit, ABI. June 2000.
  6. Cooper, E. L. 1983. Fishes of Pennsylvania and the northeastern United States. Pennsylvania State University Press, University Park. 243 pp.
  7. Cooper, J. E. 1979. Description of eggs and larvae of fantail, <i>Etheostoma flabellare</i>, and rainbow, <i>E. caerulum</i> darters from Lake Erie tributaries. Transactions of the American Fisheries Society 108(1): 46-56.
  8. Douglas, N. H. 1974. Freshwater fishes of Louisiana. Claitor's Publishing Division, Baton Rouge, Louisiana. 443 pp.
  9. Etnier, D. A., and W. C. Starnes. 1993. The fishes of Tennessee. University of Tennessee Press, Knoxville, Tennessee. xiv + 681 pp.
  10. Fago, D. 2000. Relative abundance and distribution of fishes in Wisconsin. Fish Distribution Database to year 2000. Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.
  11. Harlan, J. R., E. B. Speaker, and J. Mayhew. 1987. Iowa fish and fishing. Iowa Conservation Commission, Des Moines, Iowa. 323 pp.
  12. Hubbs, C. 1985. Darter reproductive seasons. Copeia 1985:56-68.
  13. Jenkins, R. E., and N. M. Burkhead. 1994. Freshwater fishes of Virginia. American Fisheries Society, Bethesda, Maryland. xxiii + 1079 pp.
  14. Kuehne, R. A., and R. W. Barbour. 1983. The American Darters. University Press of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky. 177 pp.
  15. Lang, Nicholas (Illinois Natural History Survey). 2000. Review and annotation of fish watershed distribution maps. Review requested by Anthony E. Zammit, ABI. March 2000.
  16. Lee, D. S., C. R. Gilbert, C. H. Hocutt, R. E. Jenkins, D. E. McAllister, and J. R. Stauffer, Jr. 1980. Atlas of North American freshwater fishes. North Carolina State Museum of Natural History, Raleigh, North Carolina. i-x + 854 pp.
  17. McIninch, Stephen P. (Department of Biology, Virginia Commonwealth University). 2001. Review and annotation of fish watershed distribution maps. Review requested by Anthony E. Zammit, ABI. March 2001.
  18. Mettee, M. F., P. E. O'Neil, and J. M. Pierson. 1996. Fishes of Alabama and the Mobile Basin. Oxmoor House, Birmingham, Alabama. 820 pp.
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  20. Nemecek, R. J. 1980. The comparative ecology of three species of darters in the genus <i>Etheostoma</i>: <i>E. variatum</i>, <i>E. caeruleum</i>, <i>E. zonale</i> in the Allegheny River drainage of western New York. Ph.D. Thesis, St. Bonaventure University 175 pp.
  21. Page, L. M. 1983a. Handbook of Darters. T. F. H. Publications, Inc., Neptune City, New Jersey. 271 pp.
  22. Page, L. M., and B. M. Burr. 1991. A field guide to freshwater fishes: North America north of Mexico. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, Massachusetts. 432 pp.
  23. Page, L. M., and B. M. Burr. 2011. Peterson field guide to freshwater fishes of North America north of Mexico. Second edition. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Boston. xix + 663 pp.
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  25. Page, L. M., K. E. Bemis, T. E. Dowling, H.S. Espinosa-Pérez, L.T. Findley, C. R. Gilbert, K. E. Hartel, R. N. Lea, N. E. Mandrak, M. A. Neigbors, J. J. Schmitter-Soto, and H. J. Walker, Jr. 2023. Common and scientific names of fishes from the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Eighth edition. American Fisheries Society (AFS), Special Publication 37, Bethesda, Maryland, 439 pp.
  26. Pflieger, W. L. 1975. The fishes of Missouri. Missouri Department of Conservation. Columbia, Missouri. viii + 343 pp.
  27. Reeves, C. D. 1907. The breeding habits of the rainbow darter, <i>Etheostoma caeruleum</i> (Storer), a study in sexual selection. Biological Bulletin 14:35-59 + Figs. 1-3.
  28. Robins, C.R., R.M. Bailey, C.E. Bond, J.R. Brooker, E.A. Lachner, R.N. Lea, and W.B. Scott. 1991. Common and scientific names of fishes from the United States and Canada. American Fisheries Society, Special Publication 20. 183 pp.
  29. Robison, H. W. and T. M. Buchanan. 1988. Fishes of Arkansas. The University of Arkansas Press, Fayetteville, Arkansas. 536 pp.
  30. Ross, S. T., and W. M. Brenneman. 1991. Distribution of freshwater fishes in Mississippi. Freshwater Fisheries Report No. 108. D-J Project Completion Report F-69. Mississippi Department of Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries and Parks. Jackson, Mississippi. 548 pp.
  31. Smith, C. L. 1983. Fishes of New York (maps and printout of a draft section on scarce fishes of New York). Unpublished draft.
  32. Smith, C. L. 1985. The inland fishes of New York State. New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. Albany, New York, xi + 522 pp.
  33. Smith, P. W. 1979. The fishes of Illinois. University of Illinois Press, Urbana. 314 pp.
  34. Stauffer, J. R., Jr., J. M. Boltz, and L. R. White. 1995. The fishes of West Virginia. Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia 146:1-389.
  35. Trautman, M. B. 1981. The fishes of Ohio. Second edition. Ohio State University Press, Columbus, Ohio. 782 pp.
  36. Wood, R. M. 1996. Phylogenetic systematics of the darter subgenus <i>Nothonotus</i> (Teleostei: Percidae). Copeia 1996:300-318.