Four additional iNaturalist occurrences with photos have since been added, and all are shown on the map in Figure 1. We searched citizen science databases and social media reports from the Verde River and its tributaries and found several instances of suspected Redeye Bass occurrence, including two research-quality results with photographs from Wet Beaver Creek (a tributary of the Verde River), that were identified by multiple observers as Redeye Bass ( 2021a, 2021b). Preliminary results from a vertebrate metabarcoding study targeting a mitochondrial DNA region, the 16S ribosomal RNA gene, from environmental DNA (eDNA) collected from water found sequences matching Redeye Bass and none matching Smallmouth Bass haplotypes at each of three sites on the Verde River (Eaton et al., in review Figure 1). Two lines of evidence led us to investigate the possible presence of Redeye Bass Micropterus coosae in the Verde River system of Arizona that may have long been misidentified as Smallmouth Bass. Large portions of the Verde River and its tributaries are now Designated Critical Habitat for the endangered Spikedace Meda fulgida, Loach Minnow Rhinichthys cobitis, and Razorback Chub Xyrauchen texanus ( ESA 1973, as amended). Endangered Species Act (ESA ESA 1973, as amended Minckley 1973 Rinne 2001 Bonar et al. These introductions have caused detrimental effects on native fishes, including three species that are listed as endangered under the U.S. The Verde River is one of few perennial streams in Arizona that still flows largely unimpeded and at least three species of black bass (Largemouth Bass Micropterus salmoides, Smallmouth Bass Micropterus dolomieu, and Spotted Bass Micropterus punctulatus) were reportedly introduced in 1942 by the Arizona Game and Fish Department (AZGFD), with Spotted Bass being considered as rare or extirpated by 1973 ( Miller and Lowe 1967 Minckley 1973). In many areas where they have been introduced and subsequently proliferated, they directly compete with and prey upon native species and have caused declines of native fishes, including in the Desert Southwest. Further work is needed to determine the extent of the Redeye Bass presence in Arizona, whether Smallmouth Bass are also present in the Verde River system, and if hybridization of Redeye Bass and other black basses is occurring.īlack bass (Genus Micropterus) comprises one of the most important groups of game fish in the United States and these species have been introduced outside of their native range extensively ( Long et al. These results support the hypothesis that at least one of the introductions of black bass in Arizona's Verde River founded a previously unrecognized population of Redeye Bass. Similarly, nuclear SNP data from the five individuals collected from the Verde River aligned with Redeye Bass reference genotypes based on STRUCTURE analysis.

Results of the ND2 genetic sequencing and phylogenetic analysis indicated that these fish likely originated from native Redeye Bass stock from the Coosa River system of Alabama, Georgia, and Tennessee. We extracted DNA from fin clips of five individuals for phylogenetic analysis of the nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide + hydrogen (NADH) dehydrogenase subunit 2 (ND2) mitochondrial gene and for analysis of nuclear DNA using a diagnostic Single Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP) panel. We analyzed mitochondrial and nuclear genetic data to determine whether one of the black bass (Genus Micropterus) species historically introduced to the Verde River was Redeye Bass and whether they persist in the system. Meristic data for lateral line scales, scales above lateral line, and scales below lateral line were all consistent with Redeye Bass and not Smallmouth Bass. We performed meristic measurements on 15 individuals sampled from the Upper Verde River Wildlife Area, Yavapai County, Arizona. We report genetic and morphological evidence for the presence of Redeye Bass Micropterus coosae, in the Verde River of Arizona, previously thought to be Smallmouth Bass Micropterus dolomieu.

University of arizona geneious prime