Fundulus heteroclitus, Mummichog : aquarium

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Fundulus heteroclitus (Linnaeus, 1766)

Mummichog
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Native range | All suitable habitat | Point map | Year 2100
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Fundulus heteroclitus   AquaMaps   Data sources: GBIF OBIS
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Image of Fundulus heteroclitus (Mummichog)
Fundulus heteroclitus
Juvenile picture by Terceira, A.C.

Classification / Names Common names | Synonyms | Catalog of Fishes(genus, species) | ITIS | CoL | WoRMS | Cloffa

Teleostei (teleosts) > Cyprinodontiformes (Rivulines, killifishes and live bearers) > Fundulidae (Topminnows and killifishes)
Etymology: Fundulus: Latin, fundus = bottom; a peculiar name for a topminnow, coined for a bottom species of Atlantic coast being "the abode of the fundulus mudfish" (Ref. 45335).
More on author: Linnaeus.

Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range Ecology

Marine; freshwater; brackish; benthopelagic; non-migratory. Temperate; 10°C - 24°C (Ref. 12468); 52°N - 28°N, 82°W - 55°W

Distribution Countries | FAO areas | Ecosystems | Occurrences | Point map | Introductions | Faunafri

Western Atlantic: Gulf of St. Lawrence to northeast Florida, USA. Two subspecies were previously recognized: Fundulus heteroclitus heteroclitus and Fundulus heteroclitus macrolepidotus (Ref. 86798). Introduced to southern Portugal and southern Spain (Ref. 59043).

Length at first maturity / Size / Weight / Age

Maturity: Lm ?, range 4 - ? cm
Max length : 15.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 27139); common length : 8.9 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 12193); max. reported age: 4 years (Ref. 59043)

Short description Morphology | Morphometrics

Distinguished from nearly identical species Fundulus grandis by having the following characters: more convex upper profile; dark bars alternating with silvery interspaces on side; small ocellus at rear of dorsal fin of male; and each mandible with 4 pores (Ref. 86798).

Biology     Glossary (e.g. epibenthic)

Facultative air-breathing (Ref. 126274); Occurs in saltwater marshes, tidal creeks and nearby fresh water (Ref. 86798). A resident intertidal species with homing behavior (Ref. 32612). Adults are mainly found in saltwater marshes and in tidal creeks. They may leave tide pools if aquatic conditions become inhospitable (Ref. 31184). They also enter fresh water to a limited extent (Ref. 7251). Not a seasonal killifish. They breathe air when out of water (Ref. 31184). Difficult to maintain in aquariums (Ref. 27139). Introduction has caused the decline of native species and near extinction of Aphanius baeticus in southwestern Spain (Ref. 59043).

Life cycle and mating behavior Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae

Deposits eggs in the shells of Modiolus demissus (Ref. 26281).

Main reference Upload your references | References | Coordinator : Costa, Wilson J.E.M. | Collaborators

Page, L.M. and B.M. Burr, 2011. A field guide to freshwater fishes of North America north of Mexico. Boston : Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 663p. (Ref. 86798)

IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 126983)

  Least Concern (LC) ; Date assessed: 01 February 2012

CITES

Not Evaluated

CMS (Ref. 116361)

Not Evaluated

Threat to humans

  Harmless





Human uses

Aquarium: commercial
FAO - Publication: search | FishSource |

More information

Countries
FAO areas
Ecosystems
Occurrences
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Ecology
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Food items
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Common names
Synonyms
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Predators
Ecotoxicology
Reproduction
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Spawning
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Fecundity
Eggs
Egg development
Age/Size
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Length-weight
Length-length
Length-frequencies
Morphometrics
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Larvae
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Ciguatera
Speed
Swim. type
Gill area
Otoliths
Brains
Vision

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Special reports

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Summary page | Point data | Common names | Photos

Internet sources

AFORO (otoliths) | Alien/Invasive Species database | Aquatic Commons | BHL | Cloffa | BOLDSystems | Websites from users | Check FishWatcher | CISTI | Catalog of Fishes: genus, species | DiscoverLife | ECOTOX | FAO - Publication: search | Faunafri | Fishipedia | Fishtrace | GenBank: genome, nucleotide | GloBI | Google Books | Google Scholar | Google | IGFA World Record | MitoFish | National databases | Otolith Atlas of Taiwan Fishes | Public aquariums | PubMed | Reef Life Survey | Socotra Atlas | Tree of Life | Wikipedia: Go, Search | World Records Freshwater Fishing | Zoological Record

Estimates based on models

Preferred temperature (Ref. 123201): 6.1 - 23.7, mean 9.3 °C (based on 163 cells).
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref. 82804):  PD50 = 0.5000   [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.00933 (0.00721 - 0.01208), b=3.17 (3.10 - 3.24), in cm total length, based on LWR estimates for this species (Ref. 93245).
Trophic level (Ref. 69278):  3.6   ±0.48 se; based on food items.
Generation time: 1.5 ( na - na) years. Estimated as median ln(3)/K based on 1 growth studies.
Resilience (Ref. 120179):  Medium, minimum population doubling time 1.4 - 4.4 years (tm<1; tmax=4).
Fishing Vulnerability (Ref. 59153):  Low vulnerability (19 of 100).
Nutrients (Ref. 124155):  Calcium = 82.9 [39.2, 188.9] mg/100g ; Iron = 0.442 [0.225, 0.881] mg/100g ; Protein = 17.9 [16.5, 19.2] % ; Omega3 = 0.594 [0.249, 1.464] g/100g ; Selenium = 4.78 [1.73, 11.60] μg/100g ; VitaminA = 29.2 [7.9, 115.4] μg/100g ; Zinc = 1.09 [0.70, 1.68] mg/100g (wet weight);