Geographic Range
Blue suckers are widespread but rare throughout the Mississippi River basin in the
United States. They are found from Pennsylvania to the Yellowstone and Missouri Rivers
in central Montana, and in the Rio Grande River from Texas to Alabama.
Habitat
Blue suckers inhabit main stems of major rivers and lower sections of main tributaries
throughout their range. They are well adapted to strong currents and are found within
riffles and rapidly flowing chutes. Blue suckers require gravel or rock bottoms with
constantly flowing water that is relatively silt-free.
- Habitat Regions
- temperate
- freshwater
- Aquatic Biomes
- benthic
- rivers and streams
Physical Description
Blue suckers are olive in color with blue-black fins for the majority of the year.
In the spawning season, they have blue-black fins, backs, and sides, and blue-white
bellies. Blue suckers have long, compressed bodies, relatively small heads, subterminal
mouths, and papillose lips. Dorsal fins are long and extend far down the length of
the body. Dorsal fins are also falcate, meaning that the first several anterior rays
of the dorsal fin are considerably longer than the posterior rays. This gives the
appearance that the fin is pointed at the front and has a curved taper throughout
the rest of the fin. The tail is deeply forked and has more than 24 rays. Adult blue
suckers grow to be 76 to 102 cm long and typically weigh 1.8 to 4.5 kg. Blue suckers
exhibit sexual dimorphism, with females larger than males by an average of 7 cm at
comparable ages.
- Other Physical Features
- ectothermic
- bilateral symmetry
- Sexual Dimorphism
- female larger
Development
Little is known about juvenile development in this species. It has been observed that
spawning takes place in tributaries of the main stems of major rivers. Adults and
juveniles segregate, with juveniles taking advantage of the slack waters in tributaries
and backwaters.
Reproduction
Blue suckers spawn on sand, gravel and cobble substrates in tributaries at 0.3 to
3 m deep. They breed in the spring between April and June, at water temperatures around
10°C.
- Mating System
- polygynandrous (promiscuous)
Both male and female blue suckers reach sexual maturity at 3 to 4 years of age. Males
develop small mating horns on their head, lips, and back during the spawning months.
A female between 57 and 75 cm can produce anywhere from 150,000 to 250,000 eggs during
the spawning season.
- Key Reproductive Features
- iteroparous
- gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate)
- sexual
- fertilization
- broadcast (group) spawning
- oviparous
- Parental Investment
- female parental care
-
pre-fertilization
- provisioning
-
protecting
- female
Lifespan/Longevity
Behavior
Little is known about blue sucker behavior. Observation in the wild is difficult due
to swift currents and turbid waters that these fish inhabit. It it assumed that blue
suckers hug the bottom of the main stem of river systems and wait for the current
to bring food to them.
- Key Behaviors
- natatorial
- motile
- migratory
Home Range
No published information is available on the home range of blue suckers. They have
been known to migrate nearly 200 km to suitable spawning areas during and after the
spawning season.
Communication and Perception
Male and female blue suckers change coloration during the spawning season. Males also
develop visible bumps on their heads during this time, so visual and tactile cues
are likely important in blue sucker communication.
- Perception Channels
- visual
- tactile
- acoustic
- vibrations
- chemical
Food Habits
Blue suckers are bottom feeders whose diet includes aquatic insects, insect larvae,
crustaceans, plant material, and algae.
- Primary Diet
-
carnivore
- insectivore
- eats non-insect arthropods
-
herbivore
- algivore
- omnivore
- detritivore
- Animal Foods
- insects
- aquatic crustaceans
- Plant Foods
- algae
- Other Foods
- detritus
Predation
Known predators of blue suckers include many game fish species common to the Mississippi
river basin such as largemouth bass, northern pike, muskellunge, and walleye.
Ecosystem Roles
Blue suckers are predators and prey in the ecosystems they inhabit.
Economic Importance for Humans: Positive
In the late 1800’s, nearly 2 million pounds of blue suckers were harvested from a
21-mile section of the Mississippi River for human consumption. More recently, their
populations have not been large enough to consider harvesting them.
- Positive Impacts
- food
Economic Importance for Humans: Negative
Blue suckers have no known negative economic impacts on humans.
Conservation Status
Additional Links
Contributors
Ryan Acker (author), Minnesota State University, Mankato, Robert Sorensen (editor), Minnesota State University, Mankato, Catherine Kent (editor), Special Projects, Jeremy Wright (editor), University of Michigan-Ann Arbor.
- Nearctic
-
living in the Nearctic biogeographic province, the northern part of the New World. This includes Greenland, the Canadian Arctic islands, and all of the North American as far south as the highlands of central Mexico.
- native range
-
the area in which the animal is naturally found, the region in which it is endemic.
- temperate
-
that region of the Earth between 23.5 degrees North and 60 degrees North (between the Tropic of Cancer and the Arctic Circle) and between 23.5 degrees South and 60 degrees South (between the Tropic of Capricorn and the Antarctic Circle).
- freshwater
-
mainly lives in water that is not salty.
- benthic
-
Referring to an animal that lives on or near the bottom of a body of water. Also an aquatic biome consisting of the ocean bottom below the pelagic and coastal zones. Bottom habitats in the very deepest oceans (below 9000 m) are sometimes referred to as the abyssal zone. see also oceanic vent.
- ectothermic
-
animals which must use heat acquired from the environment and behavioral adaptations to regulate body temperature
- bilateral symmetry
-
having body symmetry such that the animal can be divided in one plane into two mirror-image halves. Animals with bilateral symmetry have dorsal and ventral sides, as well as anterior and posterior ends. Synapomorphy of the Bilateria.
- polygynandrous
-
the kind of polygamy in which a female pairs with several males, each of which also pairs with several different females.
- iteroparous
-
offspring are produced in more than one group (litters, clutches, etc.) and across multiple seasons (or other periods hospitable to reproduction). Iteroparous animals must, by definition, survive over multiple seasons (or periodic condition changes).
- sexual
-
reproduction that includes combining the genetic contribution of two individuals, a male and a female
- fertilization
-
union of egg and spermatozoan
- external fertilization
-
fertilization takes place outside the female's body
- oviparous
-
reproduction in which eggs are released by the female; development of offspring occurs outside the mother's body.
- female parental care
-
parental care is carried out by females
- natatorial
-
specialized for swimming
- motile
-
having the capacity to move from one place to another.
- migratory
-
makes seasonal movements between breeding and wintering grounds
- visual
-
uses sight to communicate
- tactile
-
uses touch to communicate
- visual
-
uses sight to communicate
- tactile
-
uses touch to communicate
- acoustic
-
uses sound to communicate
- vibrations
-
movements of a hard surface that are produced by animals as signals to others
- chemical
-
uses smells or other chemicals to communicate
- detritus
-
particles of organic material from dead and decomposing organisms. Detritus is the result of the activity of decomposers (organisms that decompose organic material).
- food
-
A substance that provides both nutrients and energy to a living thing.
- carnivore
-
an animal that mainly eats meat
- insectivore
-
An animal that eats mainly insects or spiders.
- herbivore
-
An animal that eats mainly plants or parts of plants.
- omnivore
-
an animal that mainly eats all kinds of things, including plants and animals
- detritivore
-
an animal that mainly eats decomposed plants and/or animals
References
Burr, B., J. Garvey. 2006. Ecology of larval blue sucker (Cycleptus elongatus) in the Mississippi River. Ecology of Freshwater Fish , 15: 291-300.
Daugherty, D., T. Bacula, M. Sutton. 2008. Reproductive Biology of Blue Sucker in a large Midwestern river. Applied Ichthyology , 24: 297-302.
Eitzmann, J., A. Makinster, C. Paukert. 2007. Distribution and growth of blue sucker in a Great Plains river, USA. Fisheries Management and Ecology , 14: 255-262. Accessed February 08, 2012 at http://web.missouri.edu/~paukertc/reprints/Blue%20sucker%20in%20Kansas%20River.pdf .
Mestl, G. 2010. Seasonal resource selection by blue suckers Cycleptus elongatus. Journal of Fish Biology , 76: 836-851.
Mestl, G. 2009. Seasonal use distributions and migrations of blue sucker in the Middle Missouri River, USA. Ecology of Freshwater Fish , 18: 437-444.
Sutton, M. 2009. Blue sucker stock characteristics in the Wabash River Indiana-Illinois, USA. Fisheries Managment and Ecology , 16: 21-27.
Yeager, B., K. Semmens. 1987. Early Development of the Blue Sucker, Cycleptus elongatus. Copeia , 2: 312-316. Accessed February 08, 2012 at http://www.jstor.org.ezp.lib.rochester.edu/stable/1445766 .
Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. 2012. "Species Profile: Minnesota Department of Natural Resources" (On-line). Accessed February 08, 2012 at http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/rsg/profile.html?action=elementDetail&selectedElement=AFCJC04010 .
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Status Report on Blue Sucker (Cycleptus elongatus), a Candidate Endangered or Threatened Species. North Dakota State Office: Ecological Services. 1993.