South-central reach of the Illinois River - Presence of Fish During Modern and Prehistoric Times
Y Denotes fish taxon found in given survey
Abbreviations for current status:
Extinct = Species
no longer exists anywhere
SE = State endangered
ER = extirpated in state of Illinois
ST = State threatened
FE = Federally endangered
FT = Federally threatened
NON
= non-native
IWL = on the Illinois watch list as a species of concern (species
needing concentrated conservation action of some sort ranging from monitoring
to consideration for listing).
| LaGrange Pool | Lake Chautauqua | Illinois River | Oneota | Mississippian | |||
| Common name | Scientific name | Status | 1990-2003 | 1950-1959 | 1876-1903 | ||
| Lamprey family | Family Petromyzontidae | ||||||
| Chestnut lamprey | Ichthyomyzon castaneus | Y | Y | Y | |||
| Silver lamprey | Ichthyomyzon unicuspis | Y | |||||
| Sturgeon family | Family Acipenseridae | ||||||
| Lake sturgeon | Acipenser fulvescens | SE | Y | ||||
| Shovelnose sturgeon | Scaphirhynchus platorynchus | Y | Y | ||||
| Paddlefish family | Family Polyodontidae | ||||||
| Paddlefish | Polyodon spathula | Y | Y | Y | |||
| Gar family | Family Lepisosteidae | ||||||
| Alligator gar | Atractosteus spatula | ER | Y | Y | |||
| Spotted gar | Lepisosteus oculatus | Y | Y | ||||
| Longnose gar | Lepisosteus osseus | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||
| Shortnose gar | Lepisosteus platostomus | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||
| Lepisosteus spp. | Y | Y | |||||
| Bowfin family | Family Amiidae | ||||||
| Bowfin | Amia calva | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | |
| Mooneye family | Family Hiodontidae | ||||||
| Goldeye | Hiodon alosoides | Y | Y | Y | |||
| Mooneye | Hiodon tergisus | Y | Y | Y | |||
| Freshwater eel family | Family Anguillidae | ||||||
| American eel | Anguilla rostrata | Y | Y | Y | |||
| Herring family | Family Clupeidae | ||||||
| Skipjack herring | Alosa chrysochloris | Y | Y | ? | |||
| Gizzard shad | Dorosoma cepedianum | Y | Y | Y | |||
| Threadfin shad | Dorosoma petenense | NON | Y | ||||
| Minnow family | Family Cyprinidae | Y | |||||
| Central stoneroller | Campostoma anomalum | Y | Y | Y | |||
| Goldfish | Carassius auratus | NON | Y | Y | |||
| Grass carp | Ctenopharyngodon idella | NON | Y | ||||
| Red shiner | Cyprinella lutrensis | Y | Y | Y | |||
| Spotfin shiner | Cyprinella spiloptera | Y | |||||
| Common carp | Cyprinus carpio | NON | Y | Y | Y | ||
| Goldfish x carp hybrid | Carassius x Cyrprinus | NON | Y | ||||
| Mississippi silvery minnow | Hybognathus nuchalis | IWL | Y | Y | |||
| Silver carp | Hypophthalmichthys molitrix | NON | Y | ||||
| Bighead carp | Aristichtyes nobilis | NON | Y | ||||
| Striped shiner | Luxilus chrysocephalus | Y | |||||
| Redfin shiner | Lythrurus umbratilis | Y | |||||
| Speckled chub | Macrhybopsis aestivalis | Y | |||||
| Silver chub | Macrhybopsis storeriana | Y | Y | ||||
| Hornyhead chub | Nocomis biguttatus | Y | |||||
| Golden shiner | Notemigonus crysoleucas | Y | Y | Y | |||
| Emerald shiner | Notropis atherinoides | Y | Y | Y | |||
| River shiner | Notropis blennius | Y | Y | ||||
| Bigeye shiner | Notropis boops | SE | Y | ||||
| Ghost shiner | Notropis buchanani | Y | |||||
| Bigmouth shiner | Notropis dorsalis | Y | Y | ||||
| Blacknose shiner | Notropis heterolepis | SE | Y | ||||
| Spottail shiner | Notropis hudsonius | Y | Y | Y | |||
| Rosyface shiner | Notropis rubellus | Y | |||||
| Silverband shiner | Notropis shumardi | Y | |||||
| Sand shiner | Notropis stramineus | Y | Y | Y | |||
| Weed shiner | Notropis texanus | SE | Y | ||||
| Notropis spp. | Y | ||||||
| Pugnose minnow | Opsopoeodus emiliae | Y | |||||
| Suckermouth minnow | Phenacobius mirabilis | Y | Y | Y | |||
| Southern redbelly dace | Phoxinus erythrogaster | Y | |||||
| Bluntnose minnow | Pimephales notatus | Y | Y | Y | |||
| Fathead minnow | Pimephales promelas | Y | Y | Y | |||
| Bullhead minnow | Pimephales vigilax | Y | Y | Y | |||
| Blacknose dace | Rhinichthys atratulus | Y | Y | ||||
| Creek chub | Semotilus atromaculatus | Y | Y | Y | |||
| Sucker family | Family Catostomidae | Y | Y | ||||
| River carpsucker | Carpiodes carpio | Y | Y | Y | |||
| Quillback | Carpiodes cyprinus | Y | Y | Y | |||
| Highfin carpsucker | Carpiodes velifer | Y | Y | ||||
| White sucker | Catostomus commersoni | Y | Y | Y | |||
| Blue sucker | Cycleptus elongatus | Y | Y | ||||
| Creek chubsucker | Erimyzon oblongus | Y | Y | ||||
| Lake chubsucker | Erimyzon sucetta | Y | Y | ||||
| Northern hog sucker | Hypentelium nigricans | Y | Y | ||||
| Smallmouth buffalo | Ictiobus bubalus | Y | Y | Y | |||
| Bigmouth buffalo | Ictiobus cyprinellus | Y | Y | Y | |||
| Black buffalo | Ictiobus niger | Y | Y | Y | |||
| Ictiobus bubalus or niger | Y | ||||||
| Ictiobus spp. | Y | Y | |||||
| Spotted sucker | Minytrema melanops | Y | Y | ||||
| Silver redhorse | Moxostoma anisurum | Y | Y | ||||
| River redhorse | Moxostoma carinatum | ST | Y | ||||
| Black redhorse | Moxostoma duquesnei | Y | |||||
| Golden redhorse | Moxostoma erythrurum | Y | Y | ||||
| Shorthead redhorse | Moxostoma macrolepidotum | Y | Y | Y | |||
| Moxostoma spp. | Y | ||||||
| Catfish family | Family Ictaluridae | Y | |||||
| Black bullhead | Ameiurus melas | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||
| Yellow bullhead | Ameiurus natalis | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||
| Brown bullhead | Ameiurus nebulosus | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||
| Ameiurus melas or nebulosus | Y | ||||||
| Ameiurus spp. | Y | Y | |||||
| Blue catfish | Ictalurus furcatus | Y | Y | Y | |||
| Channel catfish | Ictalurus punctatus | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | |
| Ameiurus or Ictalurus | Y | ||||||
| Slender madtom | Noturus exilis | Y | |||||
| Stonecat | Noturus flavus | Y | Y | Y | |||
| Tadpole madtom | Noturus gyrinus | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||
| Freckled madtom | Noturus nocturnus | Y | Y | ||||
| Flathead catfish | Pylodictis olivaris | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||
| Pike family | Family Esocidae | ||||||
| Grass pickerel | Esox americanus | Y | Y | Y | |||
| Northern pike | Esox lucius | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||
| Tiger muskie | Esox masquinongy x lucius | Y | |||||
| Esox spp. | Y | Y | |||||
| Mudminnow | Family Umbridae | ||||||
| Central mudminnow | Umbra limi | Y | |||||
| Trout-perch family | Family Percopsidae | ||||||
| Trout-perch | Percopsis omiscomaycus | Y | Y | ||||
| Pirate perch family | Family Aphredoderidae | ||||||
| Pirate perch | Aphredoderus sayanus | Y | Y | Y | |||
| Codfish family | Family Gadidae | ||||||
| Burbot | Lota lota | Y | |||||
| Topminnow family | Family Fundulidae | ||||||
| Northern starhead topminnow | Fundulus dispar | ST | Y | ||||
| Blackstripe topminnow | Fundulus notatus | Y | Y | Y | |||
| Livebearer family | Family Poeciliidae | ||||||
| Western mosquitofish | Gambusia affinis | Y | Y | ||||
| Silverside family | Family Atherinidae | ||||||
| Brook silverside | Labidesthes sicculus | Y | Y | Y | |||
| Sculpin family | Family Cottidae | ||||||
| Mottled sculpin | Cottus bairdi | ? | |||||
| Banded sculpin | Cottus carolinae | ? | |||||
| Temperate bass family | Family Moronidae | ||||||
| White perch | Morone americana | NON | Y | ||||
| White bass | Morone chrysops | Y | Y | Y | |||
| Yellow bass | Morone mississippiensis | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||
| Striped bass | Morone saxatilis | NON | Y | ||||
| Sunfish family | Family Centrarchidae | Y | Y | ||||
| Rock bass | Ambloplites rupestris | Y | Y | ||||
| Green sunfish | Lepomis cyanellus | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||
| Pumpkinseed | Lepomis gibbosus | Y | Y | Y | |||
| Warmouth | Lepomis gulosus | Y | Y | Y | |||
| Orangespotted sunfish | Lepomis humilis | Y | Y | Y | |||
| Bluegill | Lepomis macrochirus | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||
| Longear sunfish | Lepomis megalotis | Y | Y | ||||
| Redear sunfish | Lepomis microlophus | Y | |||||
| Redspotted sunfish | Lepomis miniatus | ST | Y | ||||
| Spotted sunfish | Lepomis punctatus | Y | |||||
| Bantam sunfish | Lepomis symmetricus | ST | Y | ||||
| ( hybrid) | Lepomis cyanellus x macrochirus | Y | Y | ||||
| (hybrid) | Lepomis cyanellus x gibbosus | Y | |||||
| Lepomis spp. | Y | ||||||
| Smallmouth bass | Micropterus dolomieu | Y | ? possibly | Y | |||
| Largemouth bass | Micropterus salmoides | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | |
| Micropterus spp. | Y | Y | |||||
| White crappie | Pomoxis annularis | Y | Y | Y | |||
| Black crappie | Pomoxis nigromaculatus | Y | Y | Y | |||
| Perch family | Family Percidae | ||||||
| Mud darter | Etheostoma asprigene | Y | Y | Y | |||
| Bluntnose darter | Etheostoma chlorosomum | Y | Y | ||||
| Fantail darter | Etheostoma flabellare | Y | |||||
| Johnny darter | Etheostoma nigrum | Y | Y | ||||
| Yellow perch | Perca flavescens | Y | Y | Y | Y | ||
| Logperch | Percina caprodes | Y | Y | Y | |||
| Blackside darter | Percina maculata | Y | Y | ||||
| Slenderhead darter | Percina phoxocephala | Y | Y | ||||
| River darter | Percina shumardi | Y | Y | ||||
| Sauger | Stizostedion canadense | Y | Y | Y | |||
| Walleye | Stizostedion vitreum | Y | Y | ||||
| Drum family | Family Sciaenidae | ||||||
| Freshwater drum | Aplodinotus grunniens | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | |
The list of fish (and current status) found in Illinois waters today was compiled
from information on the IDNR website (2001), INHS website (2002), and Smith 1979.
Taxonomy conforms with FishBase (www.fishbase.org/search.cfm).
Between 1876-1903, Forbes and Richardson conducted a fish survey throughout Illinois,
published in 1908 and 1920 (2nd edition) as The Fishes of Illinois.
They list fish found in several river basin systems including a list for the “Illinois
River Basin” with its numerous tributaries. The list of fish for the 1876-1903
Illinois River, itself, was compiled by cross-checking information in Forbes
and Richardson’s (1920) book, Smith’s, The Fishes of Illinois (1979),
the Illinois Natural History Survey online fish databases database (www.inhs.uiuc.edu/cbd/collections/fish/fishintro.html),
and ellipse.inhs.uiuc.edu:591/INHSCollections/fishsearch.html,
and maps associated with all three of these sources.
1990-2003 data for the LaGrange Pool were compiled from the ongoing Long Term
Resource Monitoring Program (LTRMP) online Graphical Fish Database Browser maintained
by the U.S. Geological Survey’s Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center
(www.umesc.usgs.gov/data_library/fisheries/graphical/species_list.shtml)
and from LTRMP data
on disc (supplied to the Illinois State Museum).
Fish recorded from Lake Chautauqua from 1950-1959 are found in Starrett and Fritz’s
(1965) report on their 10-year long study located near Havana, Illinois.
Faunal remains from archaeological Amerindian sites located in the South-central
Illinois River valley came from the following time periods and sites:
Note: The absence of a species does not necessarily mean that it was not present.
