Rafinesque, 1819; SCIAENIDAE FAMILY

The freshwater drum is the only North American freshwater representative of the Sciaenidae family which includes the croakers, corbinas, drums, seatrout, etc. It also has the greatest north/south range of any North American freshwater fish, occurring over much of the U.S. between the Rockies and the Appalachians southward through eastern Mexico to Guatemala's Rio Usumacinta system and northward through Manitoba, Canada, all the way to the Hudson Bay. It also occurs in some areas of Ontario, Quebec, and Saskatchewan.

Though it is a fairly distinctive fish, its deep body, humped back, blunt snout and subterminal mouth have led some to confuse it with the carp and the buffalos. It can be easily distinguished by its two dorsal fins (only one in the carp and buffalos) and its rounded, rather than forked tail. Also, the first dorsal fin of the freshwater drum is composed of 8 9 spines, whereas the carp has only one spine at the beginning of its single soft rayed dorsal fin and the buffalos have no spines at all.

The freshwater drum is a bottom feeder; its diet consists of mollusks, insects, and fish. Huge otoliths, “ear bones”, excavated from Indian village sites indicate that at one time they have grown as large as 200 lb (90 kg).

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Adam Castle