Article text: Wikipedia contributors, Tuscumbia darter (source revision). Licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
Tuscumbia Darter
Etheostoma tuscumbia
Percidae · freshwater water fish
2 minute read · Species guide

About Tuscumbia Darter
The Tuscumbia darter (Etheostoma tuscumbia) is a species of freshwater ray-finned fish, a darter from the subfamily Etheostomatinae, part of the family Percidae, which also contains the perches, ruffes and pikeperches. It is endemic to the southeastern United States where it occurs in well-vegetated springs along the Tennessee River in Alabama. This species can reach a length of 6.1 centimetres (2.4 in) TL though most only reach about 4 centimetres (1.6 in).
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.
Reported feeding positions include bottom feeding. The compilation combines published observations; diets can vary with age, locality, and available food.
Habitat preferences
Reported habitat associations include springs or subterranean waters.
The source records associations with clay or silt, sand, gravel, vegetation. 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 Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec for the source’s reporting region (TN). This is a regional calendar, not a range-wide schedule.
The reproductive-guild classification includes hiding a brood without subsequent guarding.
Size and recorded longevity
FishTraits reports a maximum total length of 5.2 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 2.5 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
- Perciformes
- Family
- Percidae
- Genus
- Etheostoma
- Species
- Etheostoma tuscumbia
- ITIS TSN
- 168445
- WoRMS AphiaID
- 1019778
- GBIF key
- 2382364
Common questions about Tuscumbia Darter
What is the scientific name of Tuscumbia Darter?
Does Tuscumbia Darter live in fresh water or salt water?
Where has Tuscumbia Darter been recorded in the United States?
Closest relatives
Other Etheostoma species
Same family