Happy Fish Friday, everyone!
I want to show off a fish that is found far and wide across North America but is often underappreciated. This week I present the White Sucker (Catostomus commersonii). Their defining characteristics are an elongated, cylindrical body with a blunt, rounded snout that does not overhang their sub-terminal mouth. Scales behind the head are small, and they get larger as they move towards the caudal (tail) fin. Adults are brown or olive in color, while juveniles have a more mottled pattern. Their fins are gray or whitish in color with no markings.
Juvenile White Sucker showcasing the mottled pattern. From Big Walnut Creek, Ohio. Credit: Paul DeRolf
The White Sucker is a habitat generalist. They have little to no preference for any specific habitat and can tolerate all stream gradients and substrate types. These fish are fairly tolerant to turbidity, low oxygen, waters high in organic matter, and silted substrates. Most abundant in small rivers and streams, they primarily dwell in pools beneath riffles and runs. Populations in lakes can be found cruising through vegetation beds.
A young White Sucker from a stream in northeastern Ohio. Credit: Paul DeRolf
White Suckers have an omnivorous but truly generalist diet. This means that they will eat practically anything they come across. Their primary food items are aquatic invertebrates, algae, and plant matter, but they have been known to eat small fish and fish eggs. They use their fleshy lips to sift through the substrate while searching for food.
Spawning often occurs in spring, around April or May. Males intensify in color, turning almost black on their back. They develop a dark lateral stripe, and small tubercles form on their anal fin and lower lobe of the caudal fin. Spawning occurs over gravel riffles, where non-territorial males wait for females to arrive. Lake populations of White Suckers will make large spawning migrations into tributary systems to find the appropriate habitat. A single female can lay anywhere from 20 to 50 thousand eggs!
Male White Sucker that was nearing breeding condition. From a "pond" in eastern Massachusetts. Credit: Paul DeRolf
White Suckers are widespread and native fish to North America. Their range spans from Newfoundland, down the Atlantic coast, over to New Mexico, and up to the Northwest Territories! Unfortunately, they have been found outside their native range due to bait bucket releases and trout stocking contamination. They impact the native assemblages in these introduced areas by outcompeting and replacing the native sucker species. *Even though they are common, please do not transplant these or any other species outside their current range.*
Range map of the White Sucker showing how widespread they are. Credit: roughfish.com
Range map for White Sucker in the US showing native areas (orange) and introduced areas (maroon). Credit: USGS NAS program
Historically, they have been underappreciated and treated as "junk fish." Thankfully that narrative is changing, and they are being viewed as a quality fish! The White Sucker is a popular baitfish, mainly among anglers that target Pike and Muskellunge. They also serve as a good-eating fish, commonly made into sucker cakes or patties, but you can consume them however you choose. You can go chase after them with hook and line or just sit on the riverbank in spring as they make a spawning migration upstream. No matter how you decide to see them, please remember to make sure that you enjoy, protect, and enhance our freshwater ecosystems!
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