Disclaimer:

The Nonindigenous Occurrences section of the NAS species profiles has a new structure. The section is now dynamically updated from the NAS database to ensure that it contains the most current and accurate information. Occurrences are summarized in Table 1, alphabetically by state, with years of earliest and most recent observations, and the tally and names of drainages where the species was observed. The table contains hyperlinks to collections tables of specimens based on the states, years, and drainages selected. References to specimens that were not obtained through sighting reports and personal communications are found through the hyperlink in the Table 1 caption or through the individual specimens linked in the collections tables.

---

Common name: Golden Shiner

Taxonomy: available through www.itis.gov

Identification: Distinguishing features given by Becker (1983), Robison and Buchanan (1988), Jenkins and Burkhead (1994), Moyle (2002), and Page and Burr (1991).

Golden Shiner can be distinguished from all other native North American minnows (Cyprinidae) by the presence of a fleshy scaleless keel along the belly between the pelvic and anal fins, along with an extremely compressed body and a strongly decurved lateral line. Golden Shiner are superficially similar to the introduced Rudd (Scardinius erythrophthalmus), and can be distinguished by the following characters (Howells 1990; Page and Burr 2011)

	Rudd	Golden Shiner
Dorsal fin rays	9-11	7-9
Anal fin rays	10-11	8-19 (usually 11-14)
Gill rakers on 1st arch	10-13	17-19
Pharyngeal teeth	3,5-5,3	0,5-5,0
Lateral line scales	36-45	44-54
Ventral keel	Scaled	Unscaled
Eyes	Red or with red spot	Yellow-green
Fin color	Bright red	Yellow-green (except in spawning adults and southern population)

 

Size: 30 cm.

Native Range: Atlantic and Gulf Slope drainages from Nova Scotia to southern Texas; Great Lakes, Hudson Bay (Red River), and Mississippi River basins west to Alberta, Montana, Wyoming, and western Oklahoma (Page and Burr 2011).

Alaska	Hawaii	Puerto Rico & Virgin Islands	Guam Saipan

Native range data for this species provided in part by NatureServe

Hydrologic Unit Codes (HUCs) Explained
Interactive maps: Point Distribution Maps

Means of Introduction: The Golden Shiner is widely used as bait and as an ornamental and therefore has been transplanted into many areas, including parks in the United States (e.g., Lee et al. 1980 et seq.; LoVullo and Stauffer 1993). According to Swift et al. (1993), the Golden Shiner arrived in San Diego County, California, in 1891 and quickly became widespread. Dill and Cordone (1997) stated this species was planted in parts of California as forage by the California Fish Commission during the late 1890s. It is the most commonly used bait fish in many regions, for instance California (Dill and Cordone 1997) and the Midwest (Burr, personal communication). Jenkins and Burkhead (1994) and Pflieger (1997) also noted that many populations probably became established through bait bucket introductions. The Golden Shiner has been stocked in the Great Basin as a forage fish (Sigler and Sigler 1987). According to Jenkins and Burkhead (1994), it has been sparingly introduced to the New River drainage (earliest records: North Carolina 1949; Virginia 1971; West Virginia 1970). These researchers also noted that the earliest record of this species in the Virginia portion of the upper Tennessee drainage was 1966. That record was from a site near a hatchery that used this species as forage.

Status: Established in all states listed above.

Impact of Introduction: According to Moyle (2002), this species is widely introduced throughout California with unknown effects on native species. Eradication programs were reported as common in California (Sigler and Sigler 1996).

A study by Shao (1997) showed that Golden Shiners that used brood nests made by Lepomis gibbosus resulted in reduced hatching success of L. gibbosus due to fungal infection from the presence of Golden Shiners. The reduced hatching success was offset by reduced predation on L. gibbosus eggs due to the presence of Golden Shiner eggs.

Remarks: This species is similar in appearance to the rudd Scardinius erythrophthalmus, a European species that has been introduced into the United States. The two readily hybridize in laboratory conditions (Burkhead and Williams 1991). Dill and Cordone (1997) detailed the introduction history of this species in California. They speculated that some of the "minnows" used as food for fish being transported by the U.S. Fish Commission in the late 1800s may have been Golden Shiners. There is some debate concerning the native versus nonnative distribution of this species in the eastern United States. For example, Etnier and Starnes (1993) stated that this species was probably rare or absent from east and middle Tennessee before reservoir construction, but later became established in larger waters of these areas as a result of bait bucket introductions or expansion of "once-scattered populations." Jenkins and Burkhead (1994) noted that the species is probably more prevalent in Virginia than their distribution maps show because their data included few samples from farm ponds, habitats where the species has often been introduced. They also stated that most records from the Blue Ridge and Valley and Ridge in Virginia probably are of introductions. Sigler and Sigler (1996) stated that introduced Golden Shiners in Utah Lake, Utah, are barely maintaining population levels. In their analysis of fish zoogeography, Hocutt et al. (1986) listed this species as "introduced but possibly native" for an Appalachian drainage, the Kanawha River above the falls.

References: (click for full references)

Becker, G.C. 1983. Fishes of Wisconsin. University of Wisconsin Press, Madison, WI. http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/EcoNatRes.FishesWI

Bradley, W. G. and J. E. Deacon. 1967. The biotic communities of southern Nevada. Nevada State Museum Anthropological Papers No. 13, Part 4. 201-273.

Dill, W.A., and A.J. Cordone. 1997. History and status of introduced fishes in California, 1871-1996. Fish Bulletin 178. California Department of Fish and Game, Sacramento, CA. http://content.cdlib.org/view?docId=kt8p30069f&brand=calisphere

Etnier, D.A., and W.C. Starnes. 1993. The fishes of Tennessee. The University of Tennessee Press, Knoxville, TN.

Halliwell, D.B. 2003. Introduced Fish in Maine. MABP series: Focus on Freshwater Biodiversity. Available online at URL http://mainebiodiversity.org/introduced.fish.pdf

Hocutt, C.H., R.E. Jenkins, and J.R. Stauffer, Jr. 1986. Zoogeography of the fishes of the central Appalachians and central Atlantic coastal plain. Pages 161-212 in Hocutt, C.H., and E.O. Wiley, eds. The zoogeography of North American freshwater fishes. John Wiley and Sons. New York, NY.

Jenkins, R.E., and N.M. Burkhead. 1994. Freshwater fishes of Virginia. American Fisheries Society, Bethesda, MD.

Kelly, J. M. 2001. Bait-bucket biology. Post Standard, Syracuse, NY. June 28, 2001.

Lee, D.S., C.R. Gilbert, C.H. Hocutt, R.E. Jenkins, D.E. McAllister, and J.R. Stauffer, Jr. 1980. Atlas of North American freshwater fishes. North Carolina State Museum of Natural History, Raleigh, NC.

Miller, R.R. 1952. Bait fishes of the lower Colorado River, from Lake Mead, Nevada, to Yuma, Arizona, with a key for identification. California Fish and Game. 38: 7-42.

Moyle, P.B. 2002. Inland fishes of California. University of California Press, London, England, 164-166.

Page, L.M., and B.M. Burr. 2011. Peterson field guide to freshwater fishes of North America north of Mexico. 2nd edition. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Boston, MA.

Pflieger, W.L. 1997. The fishes of Missouri. Revised edition. Missouri Department of Conservation, Jefferson City, MO.

Robison, H.W., and T.M. Buchanan. 1988. Fishes of Arkansas. University of Arkansas Press, Fayetteville, AR.

Shao, B. 1997. Effects of golden shiner (Notemigonus crysoleucas) nest association on host pumpkinseeds (Lepomis gibbosus): evidence for a non-parasitic relationship. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology 41(6): 399-406.

Sigler, W.F., and J.W. Sigler. 1996. Fishes of Utah: a natural history. University of Utah Press, Salt Lake City, UT.

Sommer, T., B. Harrell, M. Nobriga, R. Brown, P. Moyle, W. Kimmerer, and L. Schemel. 2001. California's Yolo Bypass: evidence that flood control can be compatible with fisheries, wetlands, wildlife, and agriculture. Fisheries 26(8):6-16.

Swift, C.C., T.R. Haglund, M. Ruiz, and R.N. Fisher. 1993. The status and distribution of the freshwater fishes of southern California. Bulletin of the Southern California Academy of Sciences 92(3):101-167.

Tilmant, J.T. 1999. Management of nonindigenous aquatic fish in the U.S. National Park System. National Park Service. 50 pp.

Vinyard, G.L. 2001. Fish Species Recorded from Nevada. Biological Resources Research Center. University of Nevada, Reno. 5 pp.

Whittier, T. R., D. B. Halliwell and R. A. Daniels. 2000. Distributions of lake fishes in the Northeast - II. The Minnows (Cyprinidae). Northeastern Naturalist. 7(2): 3- 131-156.

Other Resources:

Author: Nico, L., and Neilson, M.E.

Peer Review Date: 9/16/2011

This information is preliminary or provisional and is subject to revision. It is being provided to meet the need for timely best science. The information has not received final approval by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and is provided on the condition that neither the USGS nor the U.S. Government shall be held liable for any damages resulting from the authorized or unauthorized use of the information.