The Kentucky darter was first formally described in 1982 by Lawrence M. Page and Brooks Burr with the type locality being given as Barren Run, tributary of The North Fork of the Nolin River, 2 kilometers northwest of town of Barren Run, Kentucky. The specific name honours the French naturalist Constantine Samuel Rafinesque (1783–1840) who was Professor of Botany and Natural History at Transylvania University in Lexington, Kentucky and described many species of fish from Kentucky.
Article text: Wikipedia contributors, Kentucky darter (source revision). Licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
Diet and feeding
The FishTraits compilation records these diet categories for this species: invertebrates or larval fish. These are broad categories, not a claim that every individual consumes every example in a category.
Habitat preferences
Reported habitat associations include streams and small rivers, creeks.
The source records associations with gravel, cobble, boulders. An association indicates reported use, rather than an exclusive requirement.
Reproduction and parental care
Recorded spawning months are Mar, Apr, May for the source’s reporting region (KY). This is a regional calendar, not a range-wide schedule.
Size and recorded longevity
FishTraits reports a maximum total length of 6.5 centimetres. Some entries use an estimated asymptotic length; this value should not be treated as a certified record catch.
