Desert Sucker

DESCRIPTION:
The Desert Sucker typically has a fusiform, often slender body. The caudal peduncle is usually thick, however it has been thin in some populations. This species has distinctive large lips with small papillae. There lateral notches at the junction of the upper and lower lip with cartilaginous sheaths on the upper and lower jaws. Scales are large and usually number 65-80 (61-104) in the lateral line. The dorsal fin typically has 10 or 11 rays but it has been documented in the past that individuals may range from 8-12 rays. The pelvic fins have 9 or 10 (8-12). There is a great variation in morphology between major drainages. The body coloring can range on the from silvery tan to a greenish brown or dark greenish above (dorsal) and silvery below (ventral). Breeding males may develop reddish brown to red orange lateral bands, and yellowing of the lower, head, lips, and belly. Maximum size about 16in (40cm).

DISTRIBUTION & STATUS:
The Desert Sucker is widespread and generally common throughout its historic ranges in the tributaries of the Colorado River downstream of the Grand Canyon. This includes the Virgin River, Arizona, Nevada, and Utah; pluvial White River and Meadow Valley Wash, Nevada; Bill Williams River basin, Arizona; and upper Gila River basin, Arizona, New Mexico, and Sonora. While it is a species of least concern, it has declined in some parts of its range and disappeared in others.

HABITAT:
Strong preference for gravel, cobble, boulder substrates with moderate to fast-flowing riffles, runs, and sometimes glides. They are also found in areas of the stream that may contain eddies, shallower pools, and rocky runs with cover such as submerged rocks or debris.

FOOD HABITS:
A herbivorous fish that consumes algae and detritus by scraping rock surfaces in riffles and runs using its specialized cartilaginous sheaths on the upper and lower jaws.

REPRODUCTION:
Spawning peak typically occurs in spring however, due to Arizona temperatures, they could lay as early as late winter and as late as early summer. Desert Suckers prefer shallow, gravel riffles with moderate current for group spawning ( 1 female, 2+ males) with clean oxygen-rich water for egg development. The eggs are externally fertilized and settle into substrate during development ranging from a few days to up to 10 days, depending on temperature, before hatching into free-swimming larvae.