Percina sciera (Swain, 1883)

Taxonomic Classification

The dusky darter, with the scientific name Percina sciera (Swain, 1883), is a species of freshwater ray-finned fish. It is a darter belonging to the subfamily Etheostomatinae, which is part of the family Percidae — this family also includes perches, ruffes, and pikeperches.

North American Freshwater Fish Diversity

The subfamily Etheostomatinae and the genus Percina together make up around 20 percent of the recognized diversity of North American freshwater fish. All members of the genus Percina are benthic or benthic-associated fishes.

Preferred Microhabitat

This species prefers transition areas between riffles and pools with low water velocity, and typically stays on top of woody debris over sandy or boulder substrates.

General Habitat Types

It can be found in large and small rivers, and shallow 1st to 3rd order creeks in the eastern, southern, and southeastern United States, particularly within the Mississippi River drainage system, though it is not confined exclusively to this area.

Habitat Threats

Its habitat may be threatened by land development.

Species Distribution Trait

Geographically, Percina sciera is considered both wide-ranging and geographically restricted; it inhabits a variety of freshwater habitats including creeks, streams, rivers, lakes, and reservoirs across the Mississippi River drainage.

Recorded Distribution Range

It has been recorded in the eastern United States ranging from the Tennessee Tombigbee waterway, to the unglaciated Allegheny Plateau section of Southern Ohio, to second and fourth order streams in the Pine Hills of the Mississippi coastal plain.

Monitoring Location

It has also been studied and monitored in lower Tallahala Creek near its confluence with the Leaf River, which falls within the Pascagoula River drainage.

Sympatric Species Segregation

In the Appalachians, including the Elk River, West Virginia — one of multiple "islands" of fish diversity in the Eastern Highlands of the Mississippi River drainage system — sympatric darter species including Percina sciera segregate along several different resource axes.