SPRINGS FIELD GUIDE
Redeye chub
FISH PROFILE
COMMON NAME
Redeye Chub
Scientific name
(Ptero)Notropis harperi
FAMILY
Cyprindae
LENGTH
3 to 6 inches
DIET
Small insects, drifting crustaceans, smaller fish
FISH PROFILE
COMMON NAME
Redeye Chub
Scientific name
(Ptero)Notropis harperi
FAMILY
Cyprindae
LENGTH
3 to 6 inches
DIET
Small insects, drifting crustaceans, smaller fish
DISTINGUISHING CHARACTERISTICS
The redeye chub is a slender minnow with clear silvery fins, and a red eye that can be faint at times. They have a dark stripe along their sides that continues toward their upper lip, as well as a lighter, yellow-orange stripe layered above that extends along their body to their mouth. While they can grow up to 6 centimeters long, they tend to reach a length 3.7 centimeters on average at maturity. Redeye chubs can sometimes be confused with metallic shiners.
RANGE, HABITAT, and BEHAVIOR
The redeye chub is found in springs, spring-fed rivers, and creeks below the fall line of the Atlantic and Gulf drainage systems from Central Georgia to Eastern Alabama and North-Central Florida. Like most minnows, they tend to go from stationary to darting about and will usually be together in large schools. These fish mostly prey on small insects, drifting crustaceans, and smaller fish.
FUN FACTS
Due to the relatively consistent temperature of springs (roughly 72 °F year-round), redeye chubs (Notropis harperi) have longer spawning seasons and individuals can be gravid all year long. These fish are classified as stable and are IUCN red-listed under “least concern”. The genus Notropis means ‘keeled back’, and harperi was designated in honor of Dr. Francis Harper.