Species Accounts
Scientific Name: Acipenseridae Amiidae Anguillidae Atherinopsidae Catostomidae Centrarchidae Clupeidae Cottidae Cyprinidae Esocidae Fundulidae Gadidae Gasterosteidae Hiodontidae Ictaluridae Lepisosteidae Osmeridae Percidae Percopsidae Petromyzontidae Salmonidae Sciaenidae Umbridae
English Name: Bowfins Carps and Minnows Cods Drums and Croakers Freshwater Eels Gars Herrings Killifishes Lampreys Mooneyes Mudminnows New World Silversides North American Catfishes Perches Pikes Sculpins Smelts Sticklebacks Sturgeons Suckers Sunfishes Trout-perches Trouts and Salmons
French Name: Achigans et Crapets Anguilles d'eau douce Barbottes et Barbues Brochets Carpes et Ménés Catostomes Chabots Cyprinodonts Éperlans Épinoches Esturgeons Harengs Lamproies Laquaiches Lépisostés Morues Omiscos Perches et Dards Poissons d'argent Poissons-castors Tambours Truites et Saumons Umbres
The Species Accounts are listed above by families under scientific name, English common name and French common name. The link to "Names List" gives all the common and scientific names of individual species for those unfamiliar with families to which species belong. Accounts have active links, although some elements, such as figures, will be added later.
Species Accounts are preceded by a family account where general characters and biology shared by all members of the family are explained to avoid repetition under each species. Families with only a single species in the National Capital Region (NCR) may have only a few comments here as characters and biology are subsumed in the Species Account. Further information on the fishes can be found in "Encyclopedia of Canadian Fishes (Coad et al., 1995). Some of the NCR fishes are also found in marine waters where their biology can be quite different. The higher relationships of the fishes and further information on their relatives in other parts of Canada are also dealt with in that work.
Layout of Species Accounts
Species Accounts are comprised of a line drawing, colour photographs of fish and fish habitats where available, a spot distribution map and a text with taxonomy, key identification characters, a description of the species including colour and size, general distribution, origin, habitat, biology and importance. The species are arranged by scientific name within each family so related fishes are next to each other.
Illustrations, photographs and maps can be clicked on to show a larger version with caption details.
Unattributed statements in all parts of the Species Accounts are based on a survey of the general literature for the species and may not always apply in the NCR. For example, Lake Sturgeon are described as occurring in lakes (as the common name indicates) but in the NCR they are found only in the Ottawa River. Referenced items or items which specifically mention areas within or near the NCR carry local information.
The line drawing shows characters which may not be evident on a photograph, colour photographs show natural colours and variations as well as size and shape, and habitat photographs give a pictorial summary of habitats.
The spot map shows capture localities based on preserved specimens in the Canadian Museum of Nature, Ottawa and other museums (susceptible to re-examination and correction), and on literature records, records from websites, and anecdotal accounts judged to be accurate reports (but not susceptible to re-examination other than further field work). Coad (1985a) gives a report on an error of distribution, for example, and many others have been analysed for this study. Certain records of species have been rejected as there are no voucher specimens available for confirmation and they have not been reported from the NCR in other literature records. Efforts to collect unusual literature records in the field were made without success: they are most probably misidentifications.
All localities are stored in a database. The commoner species with a wide tolerance of environmental variables and easily capturable are much more widely distributed than these spots might suggest while the rarer species, with few spots, are probably a more accurate reflection of distribution. Phelps et al. (2000), for example, captured over 6900 fishes in less than two months on the Rideau River but only one of these was a Freshwater Drum. Records also reflect ease of capture, itself a reflection of gear used, time of use, effort and simple luck. Sport fishes may have fewer localities since they may have restrictions on licensed collecting or localities may be kept secret to protect stocks. Some rivers or lakes have been intensively surveyed while others have been sampled only sporadically and/or at widely separated localities.
A map showing all localities sampled can be accessed here as well as in the Photo Galleries linked above.
Taxonomy gives some other common names, reviews changes in scientific names, reports hybrids and covers other systematic and taxonomic problems.
Key identification characters separate a species from others within its family and from other fishes in the NCR. These key characters are only applicable within the NCR. However some species have obvious and unique characters which separate them from all other fishes. Some fishes are more subtly distinguished and characters in combination may have to be used or body proportions. Body proportions are often not as clearly defining as unique structures or countable characters, varying with growth, maturity or even fullness of the gut. Countable characters may overlap in ranges. The separate section of Keys should also be consulted.
The species description is based on specimens from within the National Capital Region and on others from elsewhere in Canada and North America. The range for meristic characters is given for the species as a whole. Counts based purely on local fish or on a few specimens may give a misleading impression of the potential range should more specimens be examined.
Colour is based on specimens when alive but may also have details only visible on preserved fishes.
Size gives length, usually total length, but sometimes standard or fork length.Where the type of length is not indicated this is because it was not given in the source. Weights are not always known for the smaller species. Record fishes caught by angling may also be cited. Since fish grow continuously, although much more slowly with age, there is no definitive maximum size and larger specimens may always be caught.
Origin gives the refugium from which the species entered the NCR as the there were no fishes here until the glaciers retreated after the last ice age. A history of the area and detailed routes and timing of entry are given in McAllister and Coad (1975), Rubec (1975a), Bailey and Smith (1981), Legendre and Legendre (1984) and Mandrak and Crossman (1992).
Habitat gives details of the environment in which the species is found.
Distribution places the species in context for North America and the world and some features of distribution in the NCR may be discussed.
Biology sections (Age and Growth, Food and Reproduction) are based firstly on that known for the species throughout its range with notes from local fishes where available. Few local fish populations have been studied intensively. Time of reproduction, for example, will vary with local conditions such as temperature but is seasonally the same for the species across Canada. Details of diet will also vary depending on availability of food species in the habitat type or region of the country but will be generally similar. Growth depends on food supply, competition, and various environmental factors.
Importance gives details of the significance of the species commercially, recreationally and biologically. Some species have "none" under this heading, indicating that they are not significant commercially or recreationally and that their biology is poorly known, although any species has importance in its ecosystem. Dymond (1939) provides a review and accessible summary of fisheries in the general vicinity of the NCR in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century while noting fisheries data is recorded from different areas at different dates making comparisons difficult. In 1898 over 700,000 lbs (317,518 kg) of fish were taken from the Ottawa region (which includes some waters outside the NCR as defined here), of which 70,300 lbs (31,888 kg) were bass (presumably Smallmouth Bass) and 37,750 lbs (17,123 kg) Muskellunge. This level of fishing, coupled with pollution (particularly sawdust), steadily depleted stocks.
© Brian W. Coad (www.briancoad.com)