Golden Shiner Notemigonus crysoleucas
This species was found at 45 bioassessment sites, 0 rapid fish bioassessment sites, 10 fisheries assessment sites, and 1 fisheries presence-only assessment site. In total, it was collected at 56 distinct sites, or 3.8% of the 1473 total sites monitored by the bioassessment program. It is the 65th most commonly collected species.
The Golden Shiner was collected in 68 bioassessment sampling sessions and 10 fisheries assessment sessions. It was present in 0 rapid bioassessment sessions and 1 presence-only session.
The biological assessment program has collected a total of 1,082 individual Golden Shiner specimens, ranking it the #63 most collected fish.
A large, slab-sided minnow. The body is dark green above with olive sides, brassy belly, and a distinctive golden sheen. Golden Shiners have three easily distinguishable characteristics. The lateral line is strongly curved below the center line. The anal fin is long, with 11-13 rays. There are no scales covering the belly ridge between the pelvic fins and anus. The mouth is small, terminal and oblique, and the jaw does not extend to the eye or have a barbel. The dorsal fin, inserted behind the pelvic fin, has 8 rays, while the pelvic fins have 9 rays, and the pectoral fins have 15 to 17 rays. A complete lateral line has 45 to 52 scales. Young Golden Shiners are very different from adults, being silvery, not as slab-sided, and have a distinct lateral stripe from eye to caudal fin.
HUC12 watersheds where this species has been found