river chub

river chub (Nocomis micropogon) [state endangered]
Photo © Bryce Gibson/Engbretson Underwater Photography

The river chub has a faint stripe on its sides and a yellow stripe on its back. The head has a long snout. The eyes are small and placed high on the head. The back is dark green, and the sides are green. The belly is white to light yellow. There is no red spot behind the eye as there is in a different chub species with a similar appearance.

The river chub lives in rocky runs and pools of the Vermilion River in Illinois. It eats plant and animal materials. This species is at the western edge of its range. It was first discovered in Illinois in 1935 and was known only from the Wabash River in southeastern Illinois. It was believed to be extirpated from the state until it was rediscovered in 1987 in the Vermillion River.

Kingdom: Animalia​
Phylum: Chordata​
Class: Actinopterygii​
Order: Cypriniformes​
Family: Leuciscidae