The North  American Killies
by
Robert Rice
2213 Prytania Circle 
Navarre Florida 
32566
1-904-936-9261
Battered and abused, unknown and unloved. Sounds like a movie of the week 
doesn't it ? Well in fact it describes our North American Killies. North 
American Killies ?  I didn't know we had any you may say . You are not alone 
in thinking that, and nothing could be farther from the truth ! We have an 
excellent variety of Killies on this continent , brackish and freshwater, 
they possess a multitude of dramatic sizes, shapes and colors and are a hit 
oversees. Here sadly they are a flop relegated to use as an occasional bait 
minnow ! 
C'mon folks we can do SO much better than that! While we talk about the rain 
forest and other ecological crisis we let our ignorance of local flora and 
fauna and thus our local Killies go unchallenged. These poor guys lie waiting 
for SOMEONE, anyone to notice them. Why not you ! If tomorrow your local 
newspaper ran a story saying XYZ Killi was now extinct. Would you be 
surprised ? Would you know what they were talking about ? Would you be 
ashamed ? Maybe we all should be at least a little ! 
For those of you unfamiliar with our native Killies they are a broad family 
of small (under six inches) minnow like fishes. With a large degree of color 
variation and temperaments with in the species. Almost all of them however 
are suitable aquarium specimens. They have several characteristics that make 
them something your average Aquarist should look into. First and foremost 
they are tough as nails. Their tolerances to heat cold, poor water conditions 
and jumping on the floor are legendary. I've had individuals who jumped from 
the tank and have been unnoticed for hours when I finally find the dry, 
dusty, pitiful looking victim he flip just a bit in my hand. So back in the 
tank he went and by the end of the day was back to normal ! Second they are 
colorful, no not a neon tetra type of colorful, but they are colorful, as 
colorful as a great many tropical's out there and a heck of a lot easier and 
cheaper to keep. Finally they are very interesting behaviorally speaking. 
Your average Aquarist has an excellent chance at successfully spawning most 
Killies. Sadly so little is known about the triggers to spawning that well 
documented breeding data is not generally available. On the positive side 
when you discover how to breed these gems the data would be a real bonus to 
the University or Department of Natural Resources folks out there. Who by the 
way are finding it is the Killies not the Gambusia family that are the real 
mosquito fish. A Killi will eat 5-10 times more mosquitoes than a Gambusia. 
They are truly mosquito munching machines ! With all that going for them they 
still have been virtually ignored by Sportsmen, Naturalist, and most 
Aquarist. Only a few of us Nuts out here keeping the faith and the Killies!
That's been the hurdle our native fishes have had to conquer ! They don't 
lack in durability , they don't lack in looks , they certainly don't lack in 
interesting behaviors. What they lack in is advocates ! Very few people care 
enough about them to speak up for them. That is their downfall. Book after 
book contains no relevant breeding or rearing information. They all say the 
dreaded, see species description. Why is that ? Is it possible that all 
Killies, Sunfish , Darters and Shiners are alike ? Needing the same water , 
conditions, food, and temperature requirements? Is it possible that the 
entire continent is inhabited by only a single species of Killi, Darter 
Sunfish etc.? Of course not . It's just there is not enough information 
available.
There is great diversity out there and for the Aquarist there is great 
opportunity to work with species of which little or nothing is known. Imagine 
you could be first one to document breeding conditions of a  seldom studied 
Killi and you would not even have to fly to Africa. You could begin to 
document the range of a species that has been passed over in the past as only 
a unnamed Killi ! It's not SCI FI it's reality! All it takes is for folks all 
across the continent to get busy investing their time and resources into 
studying the world around them. You could make a great difference, without 
significantly changing your hobby. Keep doing what your doing just change 
subjects a bit.  It matters it really does !
OK, OK, you say, you've convinced me I'll try a few Killies now where do I 
start? First  check out your local library and see if you can Find Peterson's 
Field Guide to Freshwater Fishes by Brooks M. Burr and Larry Page. This 
resource book will give you a real good idea of what Killies are available 
locally. You should also check out and see if any people in your area are 
involved in keeping native Killies. Check with your' local Fish club or find 
out if there is a local Chapter of NANFA (North American Native Fish 
Association) or the AKA (American Killifish Association) both clubs are 
active across the country in keeping and rearing Native Killies and are great 
places to start (see side bar).
So what Killies do I recommend you ask  . I recommend a ton of them but for 
brevity's sake and to help the cause I'll cut my list down to five . Based on 
overall beauty, durability , availability and authors bias. Here's my top 
five in NO particular order.
The Plains Killifish  (Fundulus Zebrinus)- This charming fellow looks like an 
escaped convict with his vertical bars and golden backdrop. In the tank he is 
very hardy and I have had them spawn in both the pond and the tank. He takes 
to food like he takes to life ,with hardy abandon. One of the finer specimens 
of a fish you can keep. It occurs in the midwest. Sporadically from Colorado 
to Texas
Lined Topminnow (Fundulus Linnelatus)- Hard to find but easy to love this guy 
is cool. The male takes on horizontal striping on a light gray background 
while the female takes on the vertical stripes. Which makes them a striking 
pair to say the least. They are as hardy as you can believe and make an 
excellent species for study or home enjoyment.
Golden Topminnow (Fundulus Chrysotus) The Classic North American Killi . 
Large, Colorful, exceedingly tolerant of poor conditions and a bit on the 
mean side. Readily available in the pet trade or through fish clubs.
Bluefin Killie (Lucania Goodei) Probably the most well known of the American 
Killies this small Killi is an excellent pond or aquarium species . The male 
is strikingly colorful with fins of blue and red. It's small size and 
excellent temperament make it suitable for small tanks and jars. Occurs in 
southern regions but is available commonly in the pet trade or through fish 
clubs
Blackstripe Topminnow (Fundulus Euryzonus) An excellent addition to any 
community tank. This small colorful Killi has a shy temperament and an 
unusual habit of living almost exclusively in the top three inches of a tank. 
Very common across the midwest and south. Very easy to collect my five year 
old daughter has caught them on many occasions.
Here's a non comprehensive list of places to start good luck and good 
shing.
NANFA (North American Native Fish Association)
Membership 15$ USA 17$ All other countries
TO: Konrad Schmidt 
1663 Iowa Ave. E. 
St. Paul, MN 55106
Membership Includes a Quarterly Magazine American Currents
a BI Monthly Newsletter The Darter. Regional groups and meetings an active on 
line email group and a trading post.
AKA (American Killifish Association)
Basic US Membership 24$ other rates apply .
Membership Inf. Contact:
Ronald Coleman
903 Merrifield Place 
Mishawaka IN
46544
Membership includes twelve monthly issues of the Business News Letter. Six 
BI-Monthly issues of the Journal of the American Killifish Association
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