Blotched chub (Erimystax insignis)

Image source: mikerofishing | inaturalist.org
General data
- Main name: Blotched chub
- Climates: Temperate
- Habitat: Freshwater
- Native: North America
Classification
- Genus: Erimystax - Slender chubs
- Family: Leuciscidae - Chub family
- Order: Cypriniformes - Carps
- Class: Teleostei - Ray-finned fishes
- Superclass: Osteichthyes - Bony fishes
Description
This fish species in native to the Southeastern region of the United States. The blotched chub is a slender, silvery minnow with dark I-shaped vertical patches along the lateral portion of the body. This species is found primarily in the Cumberland and Tennessee River drainages of southern states. Although, a subspecies is known to inhabit the Upper Tennessee and the Ridge and Valley region. The majority of the Tennessee River is inhabited by the blotched chub and its subspecies. The blotched chub prefers clear riffle areas of small creeks. These areas must have plenty of substrate, which is required for this species to spawn.