Known Fish Species in Sligo Creek Watershed

Estimated Historical Species (1898-1948) = 53 (47 resident)
Species found 1988-2000 = 14 – 16 (up from a low of three known species in 1988)

Click common name for photo (if available)

Common Name Scientific Name
Blacknose Dace Rhinichthys atratulus
Longnose Dace Rhinichthys cataractae
Satinfin Shiner Cyprinella (Notropis?) analostanus
Spottail Shiner Notropis hudsonius
Northern Creek Chub Rhinichthys atratulus
Goldfish Carassius auratus
Tesselated Darter Etheostoma olmstedi
American Eel Anguilla rostrata
White Sucker Catostomus commersoni
Northern Hogsucker Hypentelium nigricans
Bluegill Lepomis macrochirus
Bluegill-Green Sunfish Hybrid Lepomis macrochirus x L. cyanellus
Rosyside Dace Clinostomus funduloides
Central Stoneroller Campostoma anomalum
Brown Bullhead Ictalurus nebulosis
Swallowtail Shiner Notropis procne

Data courtesy of Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments

Fish Stocked in Sligo per Douglas Redmond, Aquatic Ecologist, Park and Planning, Feb. 26, 2000.
A total of 23 fish species were stocked from 1990 -1998, but very few individuals of some species.

1990 – 17 species of fish stocked in Wheaton Branch
1992 – 5 species of fish stocked in Wheaton Branch (more individuals of some of the species stocked in 1990)
1994 – 19 species of fish stocked in Wheaton Branch, Flora Lane Tributary, and main stem of Sligo Creek (including 6 species not previously stocked)
1998 – 2 species of fish stocked in the main stem of Sligo Creek (more individuals of species previously stocked)

Surveys from 1997-1999 found 17 species of fish. Some of these were very scarce, limited in distribution, or recently stocked. At this point I feel that there are eleven species of fish with stable populations in Sligo Creek and its tributaries:

  • American eel
  • Roseyside dace
  • Longnose dace
  • Bluegill
  • Goldfish
  • Creek chub
  • White sucker
  • Tessellated darter
  • Golden shiner
  • Blacknose dace
  • Green sunfish

The above species, which differ slightly from those of the COG list shown in the table at the top of this page, are pictured on the Fish of Sligo Creek page.

Blacknose dace, creek chub, and goldfish were the three species that we had present in Sligo Creek prior to restoration efforts.

American eels migrate between fresh and salt water and are able to get past barriers which would block the movement of most species.

Green sunfish were not stocked, but may have come from ponds in the area; the same may be true of golden shiners, which were stocked, but in very low numbers.

The other five species (rosyside dace, longnose dace, white sucker, bluegill, and tessellated darter) were stocked in significant numbers. All of these species are now spawning in Sligo Creek (except eels which spawn in the ocean).

Further surveys may indicate additional species that have established stable populations.

Restocking, May 2004: Facts from Diane Davis, Maryland Department of Environmental Protection, to Sally Gagne, May 15, 2004

Not all the fish were counted one by one, so this is an approximate count.

Targeted Species:

  • Rosyside Dace, 150
  • Longnose Dace, 5
  • Silverjaw Minnow, 20
  • Tesselated Darter, 65
  • Fantail Darter, 40
  • Common Shiner, 1

Non-Targeted Species:

  • Green Sunfish, 1
  • Creek Chub, 7
  • Bluntnose Minnow, 10
  • Blacknose Dace, 5

Approximate Total Number of Fish Released: 305