The Alvord chub (''Siphateles alvordensis'') is a species of freshwater

ray-finned fish Actinopterygii (; ), members of which are known as ray-finned fish or actinopterygians, is a class of bony fish that comprise over 50% of living vertebrate species. They are so called because of their lightly built fins made of webbings of sk ...

belonging to the

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Leuciscidae Leuciscidae is a family of freshwater ray-finned fishes, formerly classified as a subfamily of the Cyprinidae, which contains the true minnows. Members of the Old World (OW) clade of minnows within this subfamily are known as European minnow ...

, which includes the

dace A dace is a small fish that can be one of many different species. The unmodified name is usually a reference to the common dace (''Leuciscus leuciscus''). This, like most fish called "daces", belongs to the family Leuciscidae, mostly in subfami ...

chub Chub is a common fish name. It pertains to any one of a number of ray-finned fish in several families and general. In the UK, the term ''chub'' usually refers to the species '' Squalius cephalus''. In addition, see sea chub. In family Cyprinid ...

Eurasian minnow ''Phoxinus'' is a genus of freshwater fish in the family Leuciscidae of order Cypriniformes, and the only members of the subfamily Phoxininae, or Eurasian minnows. The other species in this genus are also commonly known as minnows. The name "minn ...

s and related fishes. This is a rare species which is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

to the Alvord basin in southeastern

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

and northwestern

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a landlocked state in the Western United States. It borders Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the seventh-most extensive, th ...

, U.S., known only from a few springs, streams and marshes in the

Sheldon National Wildlife Refuge The Sheldon National Wildlife Refuge is a United States National Wildlife Refuge, national wildlife refuge on the northern border of the U.S. state of Nevada. A very small part extends northward into Oregon. It is managed by the United States ...

, and one location elsewhere. The Alvord chub is a small fish, with adults ranging up to in length, but with many half that size. It is generally grayish-whitish, darker on the back than below, and with a faint band passing down the sides. The dorsal fin has 7 rays, the anal fin 8 rays, and the tail 19 rays. It is similar in many ways to the Borax Lake chub. Studies of the fish's diet shows it is an opportunistic feeder, consuming a variety of aquatic invertebrates, with a considerable percentage of

midge A midge is any small fly, including species in several family (biology), families of non-mosquito nematoceran Diptera. Midges are found (seasonally or otherwise) on practically every land area outside permanently arid deserts and the frigid ...

larvae. It occupies a variety of habitats within its range, including waters of depths to , different bottoms including gravel and silt, and any amount of cover over the water. It can be found in warm springs, up to , but not in hot springs. Spawning season lasts from April to July. Although apparently doing well in its location, the species is considered vulnerable because of its very limited range in a fragile environment. Having

evolved Evolution is the change in the heritable Phenotypic trait, characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. It occurs when evolutionary processes such as natural selection and genetic drift act on genetic variation, re ...

without any competition, there is concern over the possible effects of exotic fish introduction, whether deliberate or accidental.

References

* William F. Sigler and John W. Sigler, ''Fishes of the Great Basin'' (Reno: University of Nevada Press, 1987), pp. 161–162 * {{Taxonbar, from1=Q28151224, from2=Q307713 Siphateles Chubs (fish) Chub, Alvord Fish described in 1972