Article text: Wikipedia contributors, Chihuahua chub (source revision). Licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
Chihuahua Chub
Gila nigrescens
Leuciscidae · freshwater water fish
2 minute read · Species guide

About Chihuahua Chub
The Chihuahua chub (Gila nigrescens) is a species of freshwater ray-finned fish belonging to the family Leuciscidae, which includes the daces, chubs, Eurasian minnows and related species. It is found in Chihuahua, Mexico and in New Mexico, United States. The males can reach 24 cm (9.5 in) in length.
Diet and feeding
The FishTraits compilation records these diet categories for this species: invertebrates or larval fish; larger animal prey (a source category covering fish, crayfish, crabs, or frogs). These are broad categories, not a claim that every individual consumes every example in a category.
Reported feeding positions include surface or water-column feeding. The compilation combines published observations; diets can vary with age, locality, and available food.
Habitat preferences
Reported habitat associations include medium to large rivers, streams and small rivers.
The source records associations with boulders, organic debris. An association indicates reported use, rather than an exclusive requirement.
Reproduction and parental care
The compilation reports a representative maturity age of 1 years. Its maturity field summarizes mean, median, or modal estimates, usually for females; male estimates can be used when female data are unavailable. It is not a fixed age at which every fish first breeds.
Batch or serial spawning has been reported somewhere in the species’ range. This does not establish the same spawning pattern for every population.
Recorded spawning months are Apr, May for the source’s reporting region (NM). This is a regional calendar, not a range-wide schedule.
The reproductive-guild classification includes spawning on open substrates without guarding the brood.
Size and recorded longevity
FishTraits reports a maximum total length of 18 centimetres. Some entries use an estimated asymptotic length; this value should not be treated as a certified record catch.
Recorded longevity in the compilation is 4.5 years. Wild observations were preferred, but captive records were accepted where wild records were unavailable, and unspecified records were assumed wild. The value is not a guaranteed wild lifespan or an aquarium life expectancy.
Range
Where it lives
Share of records by state
Habitat
Water and movement
- Water
- WoRMS records this species in fresh water.
- Migration
- Undetermined
Classification
Taxonomy
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Superclass
- Actinopterygii
- Class
- Teleostei
- Order
- Cypriniformes
- Family
- Leuciscidae
- Genus
- Gila
- Species
- Gila nigrescens
- ITIS TSN
- 163554
- WoRMS AphiaID
- 1021597
- GBIF key
- 2360076
- Outside the US
- ITIS also files it in Mexico.
Common questions about Chihuahua Chub
What is the scientific name of Chihuahua Chub?
Does Chihuahua Chub live in fresh water or salt water?
Where has Chihuahua Chub been recorded in the United States?
Closest relatives
Other Gila species
Same family