Arroyo chub facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Arroyo chub |
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| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Gila
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| Species: |
orcuttii
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The arroyo chub (Gila orcuttii) is a type of fish in the carp family. You can only find this fish in the coastal streams of southern California, United States.
Contents
About the Arroyo Chub
What It Looks Like
The arroyo chub has a somewhat chunky body. It has a deep body and a thick tail part. Its eyes are bigger than most fish in the carp family.
Their color can be silver, gray, or olive green on top. Their belly is usually white. They often have a dull gray stripe along each side.
The fin on its back has 8 rays. The rounded fin on its belly has 7 rays. Male arroyo chubs have bigger fins than females. During the time they breed, males also get small bumps called breeding tubercles on their top pectoral fins. This is a small fish. Most adult arroyo chubs are about 7 to 10 centimeters long. The longest they can get is 12 centimeters.
What It Eats
Arroyo chubs are omnivores. This means they eat both plants and animals. Their diet includes algae, insects, and crustaceans.
Studies show that fish from warm streams mostly eat algae. Algae makes up about 60-80% of their stomach contents. They also eat the roots of Azolla, which are floating water ferns. In cooler streams, they mostly eat molluscs and caddisfly larvae.
Where It Lives
Arroyo chubs mainly live in the warm streams of the Los Angeles Plain. These streams can be muddy and fast-moving in winter. In summer, they become clear and quiet. Sometimes, parts of the streams might even dry up.
These fish can be found in both slow-moving and fast-moving parts of the water. However, they usually prefer water that is deeper than 40 centimeters.
Where They Are Found
Arroyo chubs are originally from several rivers in California. These include the Los Angeles River, Santa Margarita River, San Gabriel River, San Luis Rey River, and Santa Ana River. They also live in Rainbow, Temecula, Malibu, and San Juan Creeks.
Many of the places where they used to live no longer have them. But, they have recently been brought back to the Arroyo Seco (Los Angeles County). This creek flows into the Los Angeles River. Arroyo chubs were found in the Los Angeles River (Sepulveda Dam Basin) as recently as 1978.
This fish has also been successfully moved to other rivers in the area. You can now find them as far north as Chorro Creek in San Luis Obispo County. They are also found as far east as the Mojave River. In the Mojave and Cuyama Rivers, they live near other related fish. They can even breed with the Mojave chub and California roach in these areas.
How It Was Discovered
The arroyo chub was named after C. R. Orcutt. He was the first person to collect this fish in 1889. He was very clever and used a blanket as a seine (a type of fishing net) to catch them.
Sometimes, the scientific name is misspelled as orcutti. However, this spelling is still considered correct by some experts. For example, Peter B. Moyle uses orcutti in his book.
See also
In Spanish: Gila orcuttii para niños
Images for kids
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The arroyo chub is a small fish found in California streams.
