Central stoneroller facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Central stoneroller |
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The central stoneroller, also known as the Ohio stoneroller (Campostoma anomalum), is a type of fish found in North America. It belongs to the Cyprinidae family, which includes many kinds of minnows. This fish is known for its unique way of feeding and building nests.
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What Does a Stoneroller Look Like?
Stonerollers have a rounded snout that hangs over their mouth. Their mouth is shaped like a crescent moon. They have a hard, bony ridge on their lower lip. You might also see dark patches of scales on their sides.
When males are ready to breed, their fins turn orange. They get a black band on their top fin (dorsal fin) and sometimes on their bottom fin (anal fin). They also grow small, rough bumps called breeding tubercles on their head and body. These bumps help them during breeding season.
Where Do Stonerollers Live?
The central stoneroller lives in freshwater streams across a large part of the eastern, central, and midwestern United States. You can find them in rivers that flow into the Atlantic Ocean, the Great Lakes, the Mississippi River, and Hudson Bay. Their range stretches from New York all the way west to North Dakota and Wyoming. They also live south to South Carolina and Texas. Some groups of these fish are even found in Canada and Mexico.
These fish usually live near the bottom or in the middle of streams and rivers. They like water that moves, especially in riffles (shallow, fast-moving parts) and pools. They prefer streams with a gravel bottom. Stonerollers are tough fish and can live in many different stream systems. This is why they are found in so many places.
What Do Stonerollers Eat?
Central stonerollers are mostly plant-eaters. They use the hard ridge on their lower jaw to scrape algae off rocks and logs. Young fish eat tiny creatures like rotifers, stringy algae, and small crustacea. They also eat dead plant and animal bits (detritus) and tiny plant-like organisms called diatoms. Sometimes, they will even eat aquatic insects.
These fish are known as "grazing minnows" because of how they eat. Large groups of stonerollers often feed together. They can eat a lot! One study found that stonerollers might eat up to 27 percent of their body weight in algae every day. In Kansas, a study showed that algae made up almost half (47 percent) of their diet. Detritus was 30 percent, animal matter was 21 percent, and land plants were 2 percent.
Some things caused by humans can harm stonerollers. These include changes to how rivers flow and breaking up their living areas. Farm activities can also affect their homes. More siltation (mud and dirt settling) and too many water plants can also reduce their food.
How Do Stonerollers Live and Grow?
Central stonerollers become adults when they are one to four years old. In late winter, male stonerollers start building nests. They keep building them through midsummer. They make big, bowl-shaped dips in calmer water. They do this by rolling stones along the bottom with their noses. This is how they got their common name, "stoneroller"! The males fiercely protect their nests from other males.
Spawning (when fish lay eggs) happens in early spring and summer. The exact time depends on how warm the area is. Fish in warmer places usually spawn earlier. Females stay in deeper water away from the nest. They only enter briefly to lay between 200 and 4,800 eggs in a nest. The male then fertilizes the eggs. The eggs become sticky and stick to the gravel in the nest. This stops them from being washed away by the current. Both parents then leave the eggs. The eggs hatch within a few days.
The baby fish swim together in groups. They feed in warmer, safer areas of the stream. These areas include calm backwaters and places with lots of plants. Stonerollers are often the most common fish in small, clear streams. These streams usually have gravel, rocks, or exposed bedrock. Groups of stonerollers can have hundreds of fish! They don't like a lot of mud or pollutants in the water. These things can reduce the amount of algae they have to eat.
Different Types of Stonerollers
There are several different types, or subspecies, of the central stoneroller:
- C. a. anomalum - This is the main type.
- C. a. kanawhanum
- C. a. michauxi - This type is only found in South Carolina.
- C. a. plumbeum
- C. a. roanokense - This type lives in the James and Roanoke Rivers in Virginia, West Virginia, and North Carolina.
How Are Stonerollers Protected?
The central stoneroller is found in many places. Because of this, it is not considered to be in great danger. It is not on any special lists for threatened animals by the government. Since 2013, the central stoneroller has been listed as "least concern" on the IUCN Red List. This means it is not currently at risk of disappearing.
