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Northen creek chub 



Northen creek chub 



Semot I lus a. atromaculatus (Mitchell) 



General description. — Black spot at base of dorsal 

 fin; mouth large, extending back to below eye; small 

 barbel hidden just above corners of mouth in groove 

 behind under jaw; scales smaller and more crowded at 

 front end of body; color, olive green on top, steel blue 

 on sides, white on belly; size of females to 5 inches, 

 males to 11 inches. 



This minnow is found most often in creeks and 

 rivers in the north, south, and central part of the 

 United States. The chub is tenacious of life and 

 considered excellent bait for both pike and panfish. 

 Though it spawns in moving waters, it grows very well 

 in ponds and in slow-moving streams. The creek chub 

 spawns during April, May, and June in small creeks on 

 gravel beds at the base of pools or at the head of 

 riffle-s. The male prepares and guards the nest during 

 the active period. The young fish make an excellent 

 growth in the first year, reaching a length of 3=5 inches 

 by September. The creek chub is easily stripped of 

 eggs and the number is relatively large. This fish is 

 believed exceptionally suitable for production in large 

 numbers in artificial ponds. 



The northern creek chub seems to eat anything that 

 comes its way. It has been known to feed on algae, 

 vegetable matter, aquatic insects, terrestrial insects, 

 crayfish, small fish, fish eggs, chub eggs, snails, and 

 small mollusks, and it often rises to a trout lure. 

 Sometimes a chub stomach will contain only surface 

 drift. A study of 37 stomachs taken from fish collected 

 in the East and Midwest showed the average percentage 

 of the various food items to be as follows: insects, 

 51.3; mollusks, 3.0; crustaceans, 0.8; fishes, 5.4; 

 crayfish, 3.0; annelids, 2.1; surface drift, 26.0; 

 algae, 2.8; plants, 4.6; vegetable debfis and plant 

 seeds, 1.0. 



