Conservation Fisheries           "Preserving Aquatic Biodiversity in the Southeast"

Phoxinus cumberlandensis

Like other members of the genus Phoxinus, blackside dace typically spawn in groups above the nest of a larger, nest-building minnows, frequently often a creek chub. We wanted to recreate this scenario, to encourage Phoxinus to spawn. We constructed an artificial nest mound in the tank containing the group of dace.  Next, we collected spawning stonerollers. The stonerollers were placed in a tank directly above the dace. Water from the stoneroller tank was directed into the dace tank. Several of the male stonerollers were squeezed to cause them to release sperm into the water. Within a day, our dace were spawning!