quieter areas than slow riffles. Diet The mud darter mainly feeds on invertebrates. The typical diet consists of midge and blackfly larvae, but some small fish were seen to have micro-crustaceans in their diet as well. Life Cycle Mud darters do not live over three years of age. After hatching, the fish rapidly grow to half of the total length for year 1 in ten weeks. By the end of year one, most fish averaged between 3.3 cm and 4.4 cm and by the end of years two and three, most fish averaged between 4.3 cm and 5.5 cm. Survivorship from years 1-2 was 75% for males and 81% for females, but this drastically declines, with survivorship from years 2-3 dropping to 14.5% for males and 12.1% for females. Reproduction Spawning season for mud darters lasts from early March to early or mid May, with females reaching sexual maturity at one year. During spawning season, males do not establish territories, but are more aggressive toward other males. During courtship, the male swims around a female with his dorsal fin erect, sometimes resting his head on her nape. The spawning site is selected by the female, while the male follows behind. The female enters the vegetation vertically and the male then positions himself over the female, curving his body into an S-shape. The pair will vibrate for a couple of seconds. The females will release between 5 and 10 eggs, which fall onto the substrate or plant. The pair will repeat this process multiple times, resting for anywhere from a few minutes to one half-hour. References External links https://web.archive.org/web/20130111034246/http://www.bio.utk.edu/hulseylab/Fishlist.html Etheostoma Fish described in 1878 Taxa named by Stephen Alfred Forbes