Abstract

Clinostomus funduloides, commonly known as rosyside dace, are a Cyprinid minnow (Cyprinidae) species found in western North Carolina where they inhabit areas of narrow, rocky, headwater streams. Their range extends into Ohio, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Pennsylvania. Within western North Carolina, rosyside dace can be found in non-lacustrine bodies of water, and they have been recently described from in the Upper French Broad (UFB) river basin. Past work on the cytb gene of C. funduloides revealed a clade between the Catawba and French Broad samples dating back 2.4 million years. This led to a conclusion of bait-bucket release as the point of introduction of C. funduloides into the French Broad River basin, and this, along with relationships among populations of C. funduloides, was further examined in this study via phenotypic and genetic data collection. Morphological measurements of C. funduloides included measuring body depth and counting scales along the lateral line, but these data were inconclusive. Sequencing of the 1140 bp mitochondrial cytochrome-B gene (cytb) gene on fish from four C. funduloides populations (from the Broad, Catawba, and the French Broad river basins) showed that North Carolina fish are separate from Tennessee populations, and that there has been at least one bait bucket introduction.. C. funduloides’ presence in the UFB is intriguing because of its separation from other populations by the Eastern Continental Divide. Further studies will add samples from a broader geographic range and will increase sample sizes.

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