ODNR Division of Wildlife - A to Z Species Guide - Fish - Brook Silverside

 Brook Silverside

Brook silversides are small fish that have a very unique mouth that forms a small beak. They form large schools that are active just under the surface during the day. At night they disperse and lay almost motionless near shore just under the surface in small groups or alone. These fish can often be seen in some of the clearer lakes and reservoirs in Ohio.

Brook Silverside
Labidesthes sicculus

At-a-Glance 

• Family: Atherinopsidae (New World Silversides)

• Other Names: None

• Ohio Status: No special status

• Adult Size: Typically 2-3 inches, can reach 4.5 inches.

• Typical Foods: Micro-crustaceans, insect larvae (especially midges), and small flying insects.
Description
Brook silversides are a long, slender, translucent, fish. The head is long and flattened above with a long snout that forms a pointed beak. These features make them well adapted to feeding just under the surface. They have two dorsal fins positioned above a long anal fin which no other Ohio species of fish has. Their overall coloration is pale green, sometimes olive with a transparent body and a silvery lateral stripe along the sides.

Habitat and Habits
The brook silverside can be found across the state. It prefers clear lakes with weeds and bottoms comprised of clean sand, gravel or organic muck. Stream populations are usually found in slow moving clear streams that have some aquatic vegetation. They are not tolerant of turbid (murky) waters.

Reproduction and Care of the Young
Brook silverside spawn during the spring and early summer in and around vegetation, or in streams over clean gravel in moderate current. Each egg has an adhesive filament that functions as an anchoring device. Young silversides grow rapidly, attaining their maximum length in the first year.