Captive propagation and early life history of the Yazoo Darter (Etheostoma raneyi)

Abstract

Captive propagation of fishes to achieve a variety of management goals is commonand is increasingly included in recovery plans for imperiled species. Here, we presenta protocol for the captive propagation of Etheostoma raneyi (Yazoo Darter) and summarizeearly life-history information. From 9 males and 17 females, we collected >1000 larvae,of which >83% survived to the juvenile stage. Water temperature during spawning was15.6–21 °C and larval production peaked at 17.2–20.6 °C. Spawning abruptly ceased whendaily high water temperatures exceeded 21 °C for 3 consecutive days. Newly hatched larvaewere able to swim vigorously, were pelagic, and were about 4.4–4.5 mm total length (TL).Compared to other darter species, the Yazoo Darter is among the easiest to propagate, andthe protocol presented should be suitable to meet most management goals. The protocolalso provides a sound basis for the development of species-specific captive-propagationtechniques for ≥17 closely related and imperiled snubnose darters.

Citation

Ruble, Crystal L.; Sterling, Ken A.; Warren, Melvin L. 2019. Captive propagation and early life history of the Yazoo Darter (Etheostoma raneyi). Southeastern Naturalist. 18(4): 525-. https://doi.org/10.1656/058.018.0402.