Distribution of Fishes in the Red River of the North Basin on Multivariate Environmental Gradients

Percidae

Iowa Darter

Etheostoma exile (Girard), the Iowa darter, was listed as E. iowae by Woolman (1896), who reported it from the Park, Red Lake, and Sheyenne Rivers (Figure A68). Deason and Nelson reported it from the Mud and Blackduck Rivers, tributaries to lower Red Lake, in 1938 (UMMZ 1994); Bailey and Allum (1962) listed it from a site on Lake Traverse, where it was taken in 1949; Wilson (1950) found it near the headwaters of the Sheyenne River; and it was reported from several tributaries in the eastern basin, including the Tamarac River, in 1955 (BMNH 1994). The Iowa darter has been found in all but the northernmost reaches of the basin. Apparently, it no longer exists in the Park or Tamarac Rivers. The Iowa darter has been found at 15% of stream sites sampled since 1962, but has been most common at reaches in the NLF ecoregion, where it has occurred at 45% of the sites (Table 4). The number of specimens collected at each site has varied, but as many as 54 and 120 individuals were taken from sites on the Maple and Sheyenne Rivers, respectively, in 1994.

Figure A68. Distribution of the Iowa darter in streams of the Red River of the North basin.

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