Kingdom Animalia Genus Moxostoma Phylum Chordata Rank Species | Family Catostomidae Scientific name Moxostoma anisurum Higher classification Moxostoma Order Cypriniformes | |
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Similar Moxostoma, Shorthead redhorse, River redhorse, Golden redhorse, Greater redhorse | ||
Silver redhorse
The silver redhorse (Moxostoma anisurum) is a species of freshwater fish endemic to Canada from Quebec to Alberta and in the United States in the Mississippi River, St. Lawrence River, Ohio River, and the Great Lakes basins.
Contents
- Silver redhorse
- Spawning silver redhorse
- Geographic distribution
- Ecology
- Life history
- Current management
- References
Spawning silver redhorse
Geographic distribution
The silver redhorse is widely distributed in eastern North America from Missouri to Quebec. Most silver redhorse live in the southeastern United States. It is typically found in lakes and in small to large rivers, where it often lives in undercut banks or protruding tree roots.
Ecology
A bottom-feeder, it feeds on mollusks, algae, detritus, immature insects, and other small organisms. Monogenea parasites have been found in the gills of the silver redhorse.
Life history
The silver redhorse generally spawns in the spring in or around April or May. It usually spawns at night in the shallow waters of river beds and gravel bottom flats. Reproduction maturity for the species happens late in its life usually at around four to five years of age. The species thrives in deep bottomed lakes and river systems which promote optimal nest succession year in and year out. The life span for the species is somewhere around 10–12 years, with 14 being the maximum.
One study in Quebec, Canada found that the silver redhorse is abundant in what they call V-males, as they outnumber the females considerably. For every female on the spawning bed, there is a minimum of 2 males that are used to successfully reproduce.
Current management
The species is quite abundant in southeastern rivers including the Mississippi, Missouri, and Ohio river systems. The silver redhorse is listed as threatened in the Strawberry River basin in Arkansas. The silver redhorse is not commercially or recreationally fished for through most the areas in which it inhabits.