Banded Darters

Happy Fish Friday, everyone!

Today I want to shine the light on a small fish that most probably haven’t seen but have been around before. This week I present you the Banded Darter (Etheostoma zonale)! They have a slightly compressed, short, and stubby body, and their head is small with teardrops below the eyes. There are 4-7 dark saddles crossing the back and 8-13 narrow bands (hence their name) that encircle the posterior half of the body. The dorsal fins have a rusty-red to an orange bar at their base. They commonly grow to a little over 2 inches but can get slightly longer.

Banded Darter from a tributary to the Illinois River in northeastern Illinois. Credit: Paul DeRolf

Banded Darters are found in a variety of streams, living in riffles and areas of swift current over rocky substrates. They are most abundant in moderate-sized streams with rocks covered in filamentous algae. They are typically not found in streams with sandstone or shale. In small streams, they move seasonally into pools or downstream to larger waters.

Comparison shot of a male Banded Darter (top) and a male Greenside Darter (bottom). As shown, Banded Darters have more that reach farther up their body and lack of "W's" along the lateral line. Credit: Paul DeRolf

Banded Darters are invertivores, meaning they eat insects, primarily aquatic ones. They work through the mats of algae picking up any insects in their way. Their main meal choices consist of Chironomids (Midges), Mayflies, and Caddisflies. Banded Darters are prey to fish like Largemouth and Smallmouth Bass, along with Herons and Egrets.

Banded Darter from a tributary to the Fox River in northern Illinois. Credit: Paul DeRolf

Spawning for these small fish often occurs between April and May but males will often have their breeding colors in February. For the spawn, males turn an intense green on their heads, breast, and vertical bands. The red bar in the first dorsal fin darkens, their anal and pelvic fins turn emerald, and the tips of their dorsal spines turn white and swollen. Males defend territory around a mate over the algae mat. Once they are ready to spawn, the female lays 10-100 adhesive eggs in the algae where they remain unguarded.

A comparison of Banded Darter male (top) and female (bottom) from a tributary to the Hocking River in central Ohio. Credit: Paul DeRolf.

Banded Darters are one of the most widely distributed darters in the eastern US and one of the most common species in North America. Their native range includes the Lake Michigan and Mississippi River basins from southwestern New York to Minnesota, and south to northern Georgia, northern Alabama, and southern Arkansas. They are absent from the former Mississippi Embayment, Wabash River drainage of Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois, and streams of southern Illinois, southern Iowa, and northern Missouri. They have been introduced to various watersheds on the Atlantic Slope and are established within multiple. *Even though they are common, please do not transplant these or any other species outside their current range.*

Banded Darter range in the US, native areas in orange and introduced areas in maroon. Credit: USGS NAS program.

These fish can easily be seen face-to-face while snorkeling or by scooping them up in a net. Their relatively small mouths make it hard to catch via hook-and-line, and only a handful of people have been successful. They also make for excellent home aquarium fish. Keeping the water cooler, feeding them well, and providing flow are the keys to having them stay bright green longer. No matter how you decide to see them, please remember to make sure that you enjoy, protect, and enhance our freshwater ecosystems!