Phantom shiner facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Phantom shiner |
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The phantom shiner (Notropis orca) was a type of fish that is now extinct. This means there are no more phantom shiners alive anywhere in the world. It used to live only in the Rio Grande river basin. This river flows through central New Mexico, southern Texas, and parts of Tamaulipas, Mexico. The phantom shiner preferred the warmer parts of the Rio Grande. Scientists last saw this fish on July 28, 1975, in Mexico. After many searches that found no more of them, it was declared extinct in 1996.
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Where the Phantom Shiner Lived
The phantom shiner was a fish that was endemic to the Rio Grande. Being endemic means it was found naturally only in that specific area and nowhere else. Its home stretched from Espanola in New Mexico all the way down to Brownsville, Texas in Texas.
Its Range in New Mexico
In New Mexico, this fish was only found in a specific part of the Rio Grande. This area was between Espanola and Socorro. Scientists collected specimens of the phantom shiner only a few times in this region. For example, they found it three times in 1939 in a 60-kilometer stretch of the river. This was between Isleta and Bernardo.
Its Range in Texas and Mexico
A single phantom shiner was found in the Rio Grande in Big Bend National Park in 1953. This was the only time it was seen in the river between El Paso and the mouth of the Pecos River. In 1959, a scientist named Trevino-Robinson reported that the phantom shiner was common in the lower Rio Grande in Texas. This was downstream from where the Pecos River joins the Rio Grande.
The Disappearance of the Phantom Shiner
The last time a phantom shiner was officially collected was in 1975. This happened in Tamaulipas, Mexico, near a town called Ciudad Diaz Ordaz. After this date, scientists tried many times to find the fish. They searched from 1977 to 1994, but they never found any more phantom shiners. Because of these unsuccessful searches, the fish was officially considered extinct in 1996. This means it is sadly gone forever.
- Phantom shiner on FishBase
See also
In Spanish: Carpita de El Paso para niños
