Etheostoma phytophilum Bart & Taylor, 1999

Open encyclopedia reference

The rush darter (Etheostoma phytophilum) is a rare and endangered species of freshwater ray-finned fish, a darter from the subfamily Etheostomatinae, part of the family Percidae, which also contains the perches, ruffes and pikeperches. It is endemic to Alabama in the United States, where it occurs in three river systems. It was federally listed as an endangered species of the United States on August 9, 2011. This fish measures about 5 centimetres (2.0 in) in length. It is similar to its relative, the goldstripe darter (Etheostoma parvipinne), but with paler coloration. This species is brownish in color and they frequently show orange or red markings in the eyes. They have a lifespan of 2–3 years. The rush darter lives in clear, shallow waters where it shelters around the root masses of aquatic vegetation. It tolerates a variety of substrates, including sand, silt, and gravel. The fry develop in wetland pools. Little else is known about the fish's lifecycle.

Wikipedia contributors, Rush darter; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T22:30:11.888990+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.

Identity & source status

Scientific name

Etheostoma phytophilum Bart & Taylor, 1999

Name authority

Bart & Taylor, 1999

Rank

species

Accepted status

accepted

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Chordata

Class

Teleostei

Order

Perciformes

Family

Percidae

Genus

Etheostoma

Extinction status

Not supplied by this source

Source habitat flags: Marine: no · Freshwater: yes · Terrestrial: no. These do not form a complete habitat description.

Classification family tree

Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.

1. domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
2. kingdomAnimalia
3. phylumChordata
4. subphylumVertebrata
5. infraphylumGnathostomata
6. parvphylumOsteichthyes
7. gigaclassActinopterygii
8. superclassActinopteri
9. classTeleostei
10. orderPerciformes
11. suborderPercoidei
12. familyPercidae Rafinesque, 1815
13. subfamilyEtheostomatinae Agassiz, 1850
14. genusEtheostoma Rafinesque, 1819
15. speciesEtheostoma phytophilum Bart & Taylor, 1999

Close classified relatives

These entries share the source’s genus, Etheostoma. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.

Browse 198 records assigned to Percidae.

Source literature & publication evidence

References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.

1. Bart, H. L., Jr.; Taylor, M. S. (1999). Systematic review of subgenus Fuscatelum of Etheostoma with description of a new species from the Upper Black Warrior river system, Alabama. Tulane Studies in Zoology and Botany, 31 (1): 23–50. Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references

Origins, evidence & remaining research

Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.

Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.

Dataset citation & attribution

This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11

Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.

Stable key: col:3BL5X. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.