Golden Topminnow

The golden topminnow is geographically distributed throughout the southeastern portion of the continental U.S. Specifically, the golden topminnow inhabits the Santee River Drainage of South Carolina west to the Trinity River Drainage of Texas. It can also be found throughout the Mississippi Embayment north to Kentucky and Missouri. Further south, the golden topminnow inhabits the Lower Coastal Plain and is commonly scattered throughout Florida. It has even been documented stretching its distribution northwest, extending into the Gulf Coastal Plain in McCurtain County Oklahoma and Mississippi County Missouri. Outside of these areas, the golden topminnow is extremely localized and uncommon.

The golden topminnow's diet ranges from aquatic plants to terrestrial invertebrates but consists mostly of aquatic invertebrates. Food habits were studied among many different species of fish throughout Lake Seminole, Florida-Georgia, including the food habits of the golden topminnow. The golden topminnow was observed feeding on small proportions of Macrophytes (aquatic vegetation) and a much wider array of aquatic invertebrates, including Gastropoda (snails/slugs), large quantities of Ostracoda (seed shrimp), Ephemeroptera (mayflies), Coleoptera (water-beetles), and Chironomidae (non-biting midge flies). The golden topminnow's diet does not include vertebrate prey, and the most common food sources are seed shrimp and midge larvae with water beetles and mayflies as minor contributors to its diet.

The golden topminnow breeds throughout the spring and on into the summer months from April to July, and sometimes as late as September. During courtship the male swims in loops or circles above or beside the female, sometimes pausing to bob his head up and down. Eggs are released individually and deposited on the roots of floating plants or on other fibrous material by the female, where afterwards they are fertilized one at a time by the male. After hatching the larvae rest on leaves or on the bottom and begin to grow quickly reaching maturation after 10 months. At maturation, the golden topminnow becomes slender with a rounded caudal fin and a deep caudal peduncle. The mouth is small and slightly superior and the dorsal fin is set far back on the body and begins posterior to the anal fin origin.

There is no current management plan specifically designed for the golden topminnow due to the fact that it is not listed as an endangered or threatened species.