Description
Pimephales promelas shows strong sexual dimorphism in body outline and head shape (Jenkins and Burkhead 1993; Page and Burr 1991).
Taxonomy
| Kingdom | Phylum | Class | Order | Family | Genus |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Animalia | Chordata | Osteichthyes | Cypriniformes | Cyprinidae | Pimephales |
Synonyms
Invasion History
Chesapeake Bay Status
| First Record | Population | Range | Introduction | Residency | Source Region | Native Region | Vectors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1972 | Established | Expanding | Introduced | Boundary Resident | North America | North America | Fisheries(Discarded Bait,Fisheries Accidental) |
History of Spread
Pimephales promelas (Fathead Minnow) is native 'over much of North America from Quebec to the Northwest Territories, and south to AL, TX, and NM '...(Page and Burr 1991). It was widely introduced as a baitfish or sometimes as a forage fish: 'Introduced through bait-bucket releases in Mobile Bay drainages, AL, Colorado River drainage, AZ and NM, and elsewhere' (Page and Burr 1991). This minnow has been introduced to drainages outside its native range in 33 states (Fuller et al. 1999), including the Hudson River (Mills et al. 1997) and the San Francisco Bay Delta (Cohen and Carlton 1995). It has also been introduced to Germany, France and Belgium (Lever 1996). Chesapeake records are listed below.
York River - Pimephales promelas was collected in nontidal streams feeding into the Mattaponi River VA. It was used as a forage fish in the Stevensville Hatchery, and possibly escaped from there (Musick 1972a).
Potomac River- Pimephales promelas was introduced to the upper Potomac drainage WV; by the WV Conservation Commission, 1958-1962. It was collected in the Monocacy River, Thurmont MD, in 1959; and from Anteitam Creek, Piney Creek MD 1970 (Tsai 1971); and the Shenandoah and tributaries, but not from mainstem of the river (Jenkins and Burkhead 1993). A small isolated population is known from inflowing streams near the mouth of the river, in St.Marys County MD (Boward et al. 1997).
Rhode River-Several specimens have been caught at the SERC fish weir in 2006 and 2007 (Rob Aguilar, personal communication)
Susquehanna River- Pimephales promelas was found by 1936, in the upper Susquehanna drainage (Greeley 1939), but not reported for PA by Fowler (1948) or in the PA section of river (Bielo 1963). By 1970, it was present in PA tributaries (Tsai 1971). It was present in Conowingo Reservoir by 1973 (Denoncourt and Cooper 1975), and was collected below Conowingo Dam between 1972-1984 (McKeown 1984).
Upper Bay and Tributaries - There is one collection of P. promelas from the upper Gunpowder Falls River basin (Boward et al. 1997).
Delaware River - Pimephales promelas was not listed for the Delaware River by Fowler (1948); but was collected in Mill Creek, DE (Raasch and Altemus 1991), and is possibly established in the Schuylkill River, Philadelphia PA, and the adjacent part of Delaware estuary (Horwitz 1986).
History References - Bielo 1963; Cohen and Carlton 1995; Denoncourt and Cooper 1975; Fowler 1948; Fuller et al. 1999; Horwitz 1986; Jenkins and Burkhead 1993; Lever 1996; McKeown 1984; Mills et al. 1997; Musick 1972a; Page and Burr 1991; Raasch and Altemus 1991; Tsai 1971.
Invasion Comments
Vector(s) of Introduction- Pimephales promelas is a widely used baitfish, and is a widespread accidental introduction (Page and Burr 1991). It was intentionally stocked in Potomac tributaries (WV) in 1952-58 (Tsai 1971), presumably as a forage fish. It was apparently a hatchery escape in the York River drainage (Musick 1972a; Jenkins and Burkhead 1993).
Ecology
Environmental Tolerances
| For Survival | For Reproduction | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum | Maximum | Minimum | Maximum | |
| Temperature (ºC) | 0.0 | 33.0 | 15.0 | 32.0 |
| Salinity (‰) | 0.0 | 21.0 | 0.0 | |
| Oxygen | ||||
| pH | ||||
| Salinity Range | fresh-oligo |
Age and Growth
| Male | Female | |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum Adult Size (mm) | ||
| Typical Adult Size (mm) | ||
| Maximum Adult Size (mm) | ||
| Maximum Longevity (yrs) | ||
| Typical Longevity (yrs |
Reproduction
| Start | Peak | End | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reproductive Season | |||
| Typical Number of Young Per Reproductive Event |
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| Sexuality Mode(s) | |||
| Mode(s) of Asexual Reproduction |
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| Fertilization Type(s) | |||
| More than One Reproduction Event per Year |
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| Reproductive Startegy | |||
| Egg/Seed Form |
Impacts
Economic Impacts in Chesapeake Bay
Pimephales promelas (Fathead Minnow) is rare oin tidal waters and very local in nontidal waters in the Chesapeake drainage (Jenkins and Burkhead 1993; Musick 1972a). However, it is probably imported frequently into the drainage as a commercial baitfish and is apparently exapnding its range.
References- Jenkins and Burkhead 1993; Musick 1972a
Economic Impacts Outside of Chesapeake Bay
Pimephales promelas (Fathead Minnow) is extensively used in commercial baitfish rearing operations through much of the United States. It is also widely used as a pollution assay organism (Jenkins and Burkhead 1993). This species has been introduced to non-native drainages in 37 states (Fuller et al. 1999), and has also been introduced to Germany, France and Belgium. This fish is thought to have been the vector for Enteric Red-Mouth disease (Yersinia ruckeri, a bacterium) in Europe, affecting wild and cultured eels and trout (Lever 1996).
References- Fuller et al. 1999; Jenkins and Burkhead 1993; Lever 1996
Ecological Impacts on Chesapeake Native Species
Pimephales promelas (Fathead Minnow) is at most a stray in tidal waters in the Chesapeake and Delaware estuaries (Horwitz 1986; McKeown 1984; Musick 1972a). However, it has a reputation for colonizing severely stressed bodies of water where competition is minimal (Carlander 1969) and may be established in the Schuylkill River, Philadelphia, PA (Horwitz 1986). It could occur in similar habitats around the Chesapeake. Jenkins and Burkhead (1993) have suggested that the relatively high diversity of the Chesapeake basin's fish fauna may have limited this species' spread.
References - Carlander 1969; Horwitz 1986;Jenkins and Burkhead 1993; McKeown 1984; Musick 1972a.
Ecological Impacts on Other Chesapeake Non-Native Species
Pimephales promelas (Fathead Minnow) is a potential competitor of introduced and cryptogenic cyprinids, including P. notatus (Bluntnose minnow) in nontidal streams and rivers, but it is only a stray in tidal fresh water (Horwitz 1986; McKeown 1984; Musick 1972).
References- Horwitz 1986; McKeown 1984; Musick 1972
References
Bielo, Robert J. (1963) A fishery investigation of the Susquehanna River in Pennsylvania, In: (Eds.) . , Newark. Pp.Carlander, Kenneth D. (1969) Handbook of freshwater fishery biology. Vol. 1., In: (Eds.) . , Ames. Pp.
Cohen, Andrew N.; Carlton, James T. (1995) Nonindigenous aquatic species in a United States estuary: a case study of the biological invasions of the San Francisco Bay and Delta, , Washington DC, Silver Spring MD.. Pp.
Cope, Edward Drinker (1879) The Fishes of Pennsylvania, In: (Eds.) Report of the State Commisioners of Fisheries. , Harrisburg. Pp.
Denoncourt, Robert F.; Cooper, Edwin L. (1975) A review of the literature and checklist of fishes of the Susquehanna River drainage above Conowingo Dam, Proceedings of the Pennsylvania Academy of Science 49: 121-125
Fowler, Henry W. (1948) A list of the fishes of Pennsylvania., Bulletin of the Board of Fish Commisioners, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania 7: 1-26
Fuller, Pam. L.; Nico, Leo; Williams, J. D. (1999) Nonindigenous fishes introduced into inland waters of the United States, , Bethesda MD. Pp.
Greeley, J. R. (1937) A Biological Survey of the Lower Hudson Watersheds, Supplement to 26th Annual Report, 1936 , Albany, N. Y.. Pp.
Horwitz, Richard J. (1986) Fishes of the Delaware estuary in Pennsylvania., In: Majundar, S.K., Brenner, F. J., Rhoads, A. F.(Eds.) Endangered and Threatened Species Programs in Pennsylvania.. , Philadelphia. Pp. 177-201
Jenkins, Robert E.; Burkhead, Noel M. (1993) Freshwater fishes of Virginia., , Bethesda, MD. Pp.
Lee, David S.; Gilbert, Carter R.; Hocutt, Charles H.; Jenkins, Robert E.; McAllister, Don E.; Stauffer, Jay R. (1980) Atlas of North American Freshwater Fishes, , Raleigh. Pp.
Lever, Christopher (1996) Naturalized fishes of the world., , London, England. Pp.
McKeown, Paul E. (1984) Additions to ichthyofauna of the Susquehanna River with a checklist of fishes of the Susquehanna River drainage below Conowingo Dam, Proceedings of the Pennsylvania Academy of Science 58: 187-192
Mills, Edward L.; Scheuerell, Mark D.; Carlton, James T.; Strayer, David (1997) Biological invasions in the Hudson River: an inventory and historical analysis., New York State Museum Circular 57: 1-51
Musick, J. A.; Wiley, Martin L. (1972) Fishes of Chesapeake Bay and the adjacent coastal plain, Special Scientific Report, Virginia Institute of Marine Science 65: 175-212
Nelson, Joseph F. (1968) Salinity tolerance of brook sticklebacks Culea incosntans, freshwater ninespine sticklebacks Pungitius pungitius, and freshwater fourspine sticklebacks Apeltes quadracus., Canadian Journal of Zoology 46: 663-667
Page, Lawrence M.; Burr, Brooks M. (1991) Freshwater Fishes., , Boston. Pp.
Raasch, Maynard S.; Altemus, Vaughn L., Sr. (1991) Delaware's freshwater and brackish water fishes: a popular account, , Wilmingotn, Delaware. Pp.
Renfro, William C. (1959) Survival and migration of fresh-water fishes in saltwater, Texas Journal of Science 11: 172-180
Schwartz, Frank J. (1963) The freshwater minnows of Maryland, Maryland Conservationist 40: 19-29
Tsai,C.-F. (1971) Occurrence of the fathead minnow, Pimephales promelas (Pisces: Cyprinidae), in the Chesapeake Atlantic slope drainages, Chesapeake Science 12: 274-275