About Creek Chubsucker
Creek chubs have a thick body and a broad head. Their mouth is large with the back end of the upper jaw extending beyond the front edge of the eye. They also have a small flap-like barbel that is often hidden in the groove between the upper jaw and the rest of the head, slightly in front of the back of the upper jaw. They have a dark spot on the front edge of the dorsal fin where it attaches to their body. They also have a dark stripe that runs the full length of their body. This stripe is darker on young fish and fish caught in clear water, it can be faint or absent on large adults, especially males. Large adult breeding males have a rusty orange red-color to their cheeks, lips, and much of the belly and lower fins. They may also show some of this color on their dorsal fin. Breeding males also have a dark bar just behind the gills and have many large tubercles (horn-like bumps) on the top of their head. The similar river and hornyhead chubs have slightly smaller mouths that end in front of the eye, no darke base at the front of the dorsal fin, and have dark edges to their scales giving them a crosshatched pattern to their body. Creek chubs belong the the Cyprinidae family (minnows and carps) and are also called chubs and horn chubs. Adults usually measure 4-8 inches in length, but can reach up to 12 inches.