The bluespotted sunfish (''Enneacanthus gloriosus'') is a species of

fish A fish (: fish or fishes) is an aquatic animal, aquatic, Anamniotes, anamniotic, gill-bearing vertebrate animal with swimming fish fin, fins and craniate, a hard skull, but lacking limb (anatomy), limbs with digit (anatomy), digits. Fish can ...

in the family Centrarchidae, the sunfishes. It is native to the southeastern and eastern

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, its distribution extending as far north as

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

, and far southern New York. It is native throughout most of its range, but some populations represent introductions, such as those in

Lake Ontario Lake Ontario is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded on the north, west, and southwest by the Canadian province of Ontario, and on the south and east by the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. The Canada–United Sta ...

and the upper

Susquehanna River The Susquehanna River ( ; Unami language, Lenape: ) is a major river located in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, crossing three lower Northeastern United States, Northeast states (New York, Pennsylvani ...

system. In many areas, this fish is

sympatric In biology, two closely related species or populations are considered sympatric when they exist in the same geographic area and thus frequently encounter each other. An initially interbreeding population that splits into two or more distinct spe ...

with a closely related member of its genus, the banded sunfish (''E. obesus''). The two species are hard to tell apart. They are known to hybridize.

Description

This fish reaches about in maximum length. It is one of the smallest fish in its family. It has spines in its dorsal and anal fins. Its tail fin is rounded in outline. Its body is covered in white or blue dots. Some individuals have iridescent spots. There may be a few pale bars on its sides, but these are rare, especially in adults. A number of parasitic flatworms have been observed in this fish, such as '' Gyrodactylus gloriosi'' and several '' Urocleidus'' species.

Habitat

Several aspects of the life history of the fish vary geographically. Fish on the East Coast and in

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

are larger than individuals in

Mississippi Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...

, for example. The fish becomes sexually mature at larger sizes in more northern latitudes. This may be because fish in milder climates can begin reproductive investment earlier, putting their energy into gonadal growth instead of body growth at younger ages. Fish in the east can reach a maximum age around 5 years, but fish in the south generally do not reach that age. The

spawning Spawn is the Egg cell, eggs and Spermatozoa, sperm released or deposited into water by aquatic animals. As a verb, ''to spawn'' refers to the process of freely releasing eggs and sperm into a body of water (fresh or marine); the physical act is ...

season is also much longer in southern regions, probably because of warmer temperatures and longer photoperiod. This freshwater fish occupies ponds, lakes, creeks, streams, and medium-sized rivers. It can tolerate slightly

brackish Brackish water, sometimes termed brack water, is water occurring in a natural environment that has more salinity than freshwater, but not as much as seawater. It may result from mixing seawater (salt water) and fresh water together, as in estuari ...

water in areas near the coast. It thrives in small backwaters filled with vegetation and tree roots. This species is sometimes kept as an

aquarium An aquarium (: aquariums or aquaria) is a vivarium of any size having at least one transparent side in which aquatic plants or animals are kept and displayed. fishkeeping, Fishkeepers use aquaria to keep fish, invertebrates, amphibians, aquati ...

pet.

Reproduction

The fish spawns several times in a season, sometimes daily for a long period of time. The male builds a nest in the substrate or in plant matter. Clutch sizes of 42 to 216 have been observed.

Diet

The diet of the fish is rich in

plankton Plankton are the diverse collection of organisms that drift in Hydrosphere, water (or atmosphere, air) but are unable to actively propel themselves against ocean current, currents (or wind). The individual organisms constituting plankton are ca ...

. It consumes cyclopoid copepods, water fleas, midge larvae,

ostracod Ostracods, or ostracodes, are a Class (biology), class of the crustacean, Crustacea (class Ostracoda), sometimes known as seed shrimp. Some 33,000 species (only 13,000 of which are extant taxon, extant) have been identified,Brandão, S.N.; Antoni ...

s, amphipods, and

snail A snail is a shelled gastropod. The name is most often applied to land snails, terrestrial molluscs, terrestrial pulmonate gastropod molluscs. However, the common name ''snail'' is also used for most of the members of the molluscan class Gas ...

s. Its preference for tiny aquatic larvae makes it a suitable mosquito control agent.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q1301279 Bluespotted sunfish Freshwater fish of the Southeastern United States Fish described in 1855 Freshwater fish of North America