Observations of age-0 blue sucker, Cycleptus elongatus utilizing an upper Missouri River backwater

摘要

The early life history of blue sucker (Cycleptus elongatus) is relatively unknown across its range; however, we collected seven age-0 specimens in an upper Missouri river backwater in North Dakota during the flood pulses of 1997 and 1999. Specifically, the specimens were captured in the upper 0.4 m of the water column (1.0 to 2.5 m total depth) in close proximity to the backwater-channel connection points and in the margins of marsh smartweed (Polygonum coccineum) beds.