Little Tennessee Native Fish Conservation Area
A designation of the Little Tennessee Native Fish Conservation Partnership
Photo credit: Isaac Szabo
Central Stoneroller (Campostoma anomala)
This is one of many species that build the pebble mounds (spawning nests) you may have seen in the spring. During this time, the body of the male becomes completely covered with bony tubercles (“horns”). We currently have way more Stonerollers than Nature intended.
River Chub (Nocomis micropogon)
Known as the “knotty head” by most local anglers due to males’ tubercles during spawning, the River Chub is a unique ecosystem engineering fish that occurs frequently throughout the Little Tennessee River in runs and pools with rock substrates. Breeding males build nests resembling mounds by using their mouths to move one rock at a time. Other species of minnows also utilize these nests for egg-laying during their spawning seasons.
Species profile provided by Chantelle Rondel, NCWRC
Tennessee Dace (Chrosomus tennesseensis)
The Tennessee Dace is a small secretive fish that inhabits small woodland streams in Tennessee, Northern Georgia, and Southwest Virginia. About 60 populations are known to exist, and approximately 30 can be found in the Cherokee National Forest. Only nine populations have been documented in the Little Tennessee River basin. At first glance, the Tennessee Dace looks much like any small ordinary minnow. However, if you are lucky enough to stumble upon them in the spring during the breeding season, they display brilliant red, yellow, and black coloration.
Whitetail Shiner (Cyprinella galactura)
One of the things we have learned about this large, beautiful shiner is that it makes mass migrations out of the river and up small tributaries in the fall. And nobody knows why. If nature wants it, we’re for it. One of the goals of barrier removal is to allow whitetail shiners to repopulate our smaller streams in the fall.
Species profile provided by Jason Meador, Mainspring
Photo credit: ncfishes.com
Mottled Sculpin (Cottus bairdi)
Do you know what a “mollycrawbottom” is? It’s a local name given to the commonest fish in our rocky streams. Behold the mottled sculpin, also known as Cottus bairdi. If you fly fish, you might recognize this ubiquitous little fish with a great big mouth as the inspiration for the popular “muddler minnow” pattern. Sculpins live under rocks, so they are not visible most of the time. If you have volunteered with our Mainspring’s Stream Biomonitoring Program, you have probably heard the mantra “Where there’s a rock, there’s a sculpin.”
Species profile provided by Jason Meador, Mainspring
Gilt Darter (Percina evides)
Like many other darters, male Gilt Darters display bright colors during their spawning season. Gilt Darters are common throughout most of their range in the southeastern United States. They can sometimes be hard to distinguish due to their ability to display a large variety of colors and features among and within locations. Gilt Darters are among the smallest Percina darters but are still quite robust and stout. Along with most other darters, Gilt Darters will typically inhabit riffle habitats.
Species profile provided by Chantelle Rondel, NCWRC
Tangerine Darter (Percina aurantiaca)
The darters are a diverse group of often colorful fish that share rocky stream bottoms with the sculpins. The largest and most spectacular of our darters is the tangerine darter, found only in our larger rivers. It is also the easiest to observe, and not just because of the brilliant orange coloration, rivaling the gaudiest coral reef fish. You may chance to see a tangerine darter while wading, but snorkeling in the right places will almost surely result in a sighting. These inquisitive fish will get right up in your face mask as though asking, “Who do you think you are?”
Species profile provided by Jason Meador, Mainspring
Photo credit: Jason Fridell
Appalachian Elktoe (Alasmidonta raveneliana)
Endemic to the upper Tennessee River system, the Appalachian Elktoe has been federally and state-endangered in North Carolina since 1994. This thin-shelled freshwater mussel can be found in creeks and medium rivers with a mix of coarse and fine substrates. Appalachian Elktoe are only found in Western North Carolina and small parts of Eastern Tennessee. Their limited range leaves them especially vulnerable to threats that could alter their habitat.
Photo credit: David Briggs
Longsolid (Fusconaia subrotunda)
The Longsolid has a large distribution throughout the Eastern United States but is imperiled among much of its distribution, earning the listing of federally threatened. The Longsolid can grow up to 125 mm in length, and individuals found in larger rivers tend to have a thicker and more inflated shell than those found in smaller rivers, making this an adaptable species. In headwater streams, this mussel occurs in shoal habitats, but it can also be found in the tailraces of dams with depths of up to 6 feet. The Longsolid prefers gravel substrates or a mix of gravel and sand substrates free of silt.
Species profile provided by Chantelle Rondel, NCWRC
Spotfin chub (Erimonax monachus) – Federally Threatened Species
One fish, two fish, red fish, Wow! What’s that blue fish! There are very few freshwater fishes as striking as a Spotfin Chub, Erimonax monachus, in breeding colors. Spotfin Chubs are found only in the Tennessee River drainage and have a spotty distribution that includes the Little Tennessee River and tributaries in North Carolina and Tennessee, the Holston River in Southwest Virginia, the Emory River and tributaries, and the Buffalo River in Tennessee. Several populations are known to have been extirpated and some of these are the focus of ongoing (and apparently successful!) recovery efforts.