Classification / Names Common names | Synonyms | Catalog of Fishes(genus, species) | ITIS | CoL | WoRMS | Cloffa

Teleostei (teleosts) > Centrarchiformes (Basses) > Centrarchidae (Sunfishes)
Etymology: Micropterus: Greek, mikros = small + Greek,pteron = wing, fin (Ref. 45335); punctulatus: punctulatus meaning dotted, referring to the rows of spots on the lower sides (Ref. 10294).
More on author: Rafinesque.

Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range Ecology

Freshwater; demersal. Subtropical; 40°N - 29°N

Distribution Countries | FAO areas | Ecosystems | Occurrences | Point map | Introductions | Faunafri

North America: Mississippi River basin from southern Ohio and West Virginia to southeastern Kansas, and south to the Gulf of Mexico, USA; Gulf Slope drainages from Chattahoochee in Georgia to Guadalupe River in Texas, USA. Introduced in southern Africa and has become established in several isolated water bodies.

Size / Weight / Age

Maturity: L_m ? range ? - ? cm
Max length : 63.5 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 40637); common length : 30.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 12193); max. published weight: 4.7 kg (Ref. 40637); max. reported age: 7 years (Ref. 12193)

Inhabit clear, gravelly flowing pools and runs of creeks and small to medium rivers (Ref. 6465); also found in streams, lakes and reservoirs (Ref. 10294). Juveniles feed on small crustaceans and midge larvae while adults eat insects, larger crustaceans, frogs, worms, grubs and small fish (Ref. 6465, 10294).

Life cycle and mating behavior Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae

Assuming same reproductive mode as M. dolomieu.

Main reference Upload your references | References | Coordinator | Collaborators

Page, L.M. and B.M. Burr, 1991. A field guide to freshwater fishes of North America north of Mexico. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston. 432 p. (Ref. 5723)

IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435: Version 2024-2)

Least Concern (LC) ; Date assessed: 01 March 2012

CITES

Not Evaluated

CMS (Ref. 116361)

Not Evaluated

Threat to humans

Harmless

Human uses

Fisheries: subsistence fisheries; gamefish: yes

FAO - Publication: search | FishSource |

More information

Trophic ecology
Food items
Diet composition
Food consumption
Food rations
Predators

Ecology
Ecology

Population dynamics
Growth parameters
Max. ages / sizes
Length-weight rel.
Length-length rel.
Length-frequencies
Mass conversion
Recruitment
Abundance

Life cycle
Reproduction
Maturity
Maturity/Gills rel.
Fecundity
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Spawning aggregations
Eggs
Egg development
Larvae
Larval dynamics

Distribution
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Anatomy
Gill area
Brain
Otolith

Physiology
Body composition
Nutrients
Oxygen consumption
Swimming type
Swimming speed
Visual pigments
Fish sound
Diseases & Parasites
Toxicity (LC50s)

Genetics
Genetics
Heterozygosity
Heritability

Human related
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Stamps, coins, misc.

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Summary page | Point data | Common names | Photos

Internet sources

Estimates based on models

Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref. 82804): PD₅₀ = 0.5001 [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].

Bayesian length-weight: a=0.01148 (0.00930 - 0.01418), b=3.08 (3.02 - 3.14), in cm total length, based on LWR estimates for this species (Ref. 93245).

Trophic level (Ref. 69278): 3.6 ±0.53 se; based on food items.

Resilience (Ref. 120179): Medium, minimum population doubling time 1.4 - 4.4 years (Assuming tm=3-4).

Fishing Vulnerability (Ref. 59153): Moderate to high vulnerability (45 of 100).

Price category (Ref. 80766): Unknown.

Micropterus punctulatus (Rafinesque, 1819)