River redhorse facts for kids
Quick facts for kids River redhorse |
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The river redhorse (its scientific name is Moxostoma carinatum) is a type of freshwater fish. It lives only in the eastern United States and southeastern Canada. These fish can grow quite large. They can be from 10 to 30 inches long and can weigh over 10 pounds when they are fully grown.
You can usually find river redhorse in clear, big creeks and rivers. Sometimes, they also live in lakes. People sometimes catch them using a spear or a fishing rod. They often use crayfish or worms as bait.
The river redhorse is a bottom-feeder. This means it eats food it finds on the riverbed. Its diet includes mussels, snails, crustaceans, and young aquatic insects. This fish has many common names, like big-sawed sucker, river mullet, and redfin redhorse.
Where Do River Redhorse Live?
The river redhorse lives across the central and eastern Mississippi River System. It also lives along the Gulf Slope, from Florida to Louisiana. In Canada, you can find them in parts of southern Ontario and Quebec, and also in Alberta.
Sadly, this fish has become much less common over the last 200 years. You can still find them in rivers like the Grand, Trent, Thames, Mississippi, Gatineau, and Richelieu. Recent information also shows they live in more parts of the Ottawa River than people thought before. However, they seem to be gone from the Châteauguay and Yamaska rivers. Their numbers have also dropped a lot in the St. Lawrence River.
Why Are River Redhorse in Danger?
River redhorse need very specific places to live and lay their eggs. They also do not do well in muddy or polluted water. This makes them sensitive to many dangers.
- Dams and Habitat Changes: Large dams built for power or to control floods can break up their homes. This makes it hard for fish to move around and for different groups of fish to mix. Dams also change how water flows and can cause mud to build up where fish lay eggs. This can mean fewer young fish survive.
- Water Pollution: Farms and towns can cause water pollution. This includes too much mud and extra nutrients in the water. These things hurt the river redhorse.
Because they are so sensitive, river redhorse are used as an indicator species. This means scientists watch them to see how healthy a river or stream is. If the river redhorse are doing well, it's a good sign the water is clean and healthy.
How to Tell River Redhorse Apart
The river redhorse looks a lot like other redhorse fish. It is especially similar to the shorthead redhorse (M. macrolepidotum) and the Greater Redhorse (M. valenciennesi).
One way to tell the river redhorse apart is by its special teeth. It has strong throat bones with teeth that look like molars. These molar-like teeth are bigger than those of the greater redhorse.
Other features can also help you identify them:
- Color: In the wild, their back can look greenish or light brown. Their belly is white, and their sides are mostly yellow.
- Spots: They have dark, crescent-shaped spots on the scales along their back and sides.
- Fins: Their pectoral, pelvic, and anal fins are orange or red. Their dorsal (top) and caudal (tail) fins are completely red.
