Hypentelium nigricans
Copyright, Jay DeLong
The Northern Hog Sucker
is one of several species of suckers in our area. It has a
large head and long, slender body. The body is reddish-brown
or olive-brown with dark bands. This fish has a white belly
and is known for its sucker mouth on the underside of its
head. Northern Hog Suckers usually grow from 7 to 14 inches
long, although they are known to grow up to 22
inches. This fish lives in clean
streams with a medium to swift current. It does not do well
in polluted water. The hog sucker likes a gravel or rocky
bottom, where it is well-camouflaged
by its color pattern. Copyright, Garold W.
Sneegas
John Lyons
Northern Hog Suckers
spawn
when they are three years old. Each fish, which lives on its
own for the rest of the year, will swim upstream in April or
May with other suckers. Several males will join
one female in shallow water with riffles (small rapids), and
using their fins,
they will hollow out an area about three feet wide. After
the female lays her eggs, the males fertilize them while
standing on their heads with their tails out of the
water. Ohio Department of
Natural Resources, Division of Natural Areas and
Preserves
John Lyons
Parents do not care for
their eggs, which will hatch in about 10 days. Young fish
have many predators,
especially larger fish. If not eaten when they are young,
these fish can live up to 11 years. Northern Hog Suckers get
most of their food on the bottom. They scrape
algae
from rocks, turn over stones for aquatic
insects, and suck up ooze from the bottom for plant and
animal matter.
Other foods include snails, clams, worms, mussels, fish
eggs, and crustaceans
(such as crayfish, copepods, and water fleas). Copyright 2002,
KDFWR/photo by John MacGregor
John Lyons
