Iowa Fish Atlas

Native: Yes

State Rank: S3

ITIS Code: 161088          

National Rank:  N4

Global Rank: G4

Modeled By: Anna Loan-Wilsey

State Range:

The paddlefish is predominantly a “big” river species and is found throughout the Mississippi and Missouri Rivers.  It is also occasionally taken in fish surveys and by anglers in the lower portion of the Cedar, Des Moines and Iowa rivers.  Although once common to the large, natural lakes of northwest Iowa, the paddlefish is now absent from East and West Okobji Lakes and Spirit Lake (Harlan et al. 1987).

Habitat Affinities:

The paddlefish is a highly mobile species spending most of its life in sluggish pools, bayous, lowland oxbow lakes, impoundments, reservoirs and large, low-gradient rivers with rich growths of phytoplankton for feeding (Cross and Collins 1995; Douglas 1974; Etnier and Starnes 1993; Robison and Buchanan 1988; Trautman 1981). However, there must be a river with extensive gravel bars attached to these habitats in order for spawning to occur (Pflieger 1997; Phillips et. al. 1982; Robison and Buchanan 1988). In some parts of its range, the largest paddlefish populations exist in artificial impoundments having a river with adequate spawning habitat attached (Pflieger 1997). Paddlefish numbers have been drastically reduced by over-exploitation and the destruction of much of its natural habitat by stream channelization, levee construction, impoundment, pollution and drainage of streams and bottomland lakes (Eddy and Underhill 1974; Etnier and Starnes 1993; Harlan et al. 1987; Pflieger 1997; Phillips et. al. 1982; Robison and Buchanan 1988).

Predictive Model(s):

Statewide Model: Range Only

The distribution is based upon existing collection records.

Mississippi River Model:

The distribution is based upon existing collection records and professional review.

("pool" >= 'S08' AND "pool" <= 'S20')

Missouri River Model

The distribution is based upon existing collection records and professional review.

("pool" >= 'O17' AND "pool" <= 'O19')

Overall Prediction:

("pool" >= 'O17' AND "pool" <= 'O19') OR ("pool" >= 'S08' AND "pool" <= 'S20')

Literature Cited:

Cross, F.B., and J.T. Collins.  1995.  Fishes in Kansas.  University of Kansas Natural History Museum, Public Education Series No. 14, Lawrence, Kansas.   315 pp.

Douglas, N.H.  1974.  Freshwater fishes of Louisiana.  Claitor’s Publishing Division, Sponsored by Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Commission, Baton Rouge, Louisiana.  443 pp.

Eddy, S., and J.C. Underhill.  1974.  Northern fishes; with special reference to the upper Mississippi Valley.  University of Minnesota Press, Minneapolis, Minnesota.  414 pp.

Etnier, D.A., and W.E. Starnes.  1993.  The fishes of Tennessee.  University of Tennessee Press, Knoxville, Tennessee.  681 pp.

Harlan, J.R., E.B. Speaker, and J. Mayhew.  1987.  Iowa fish and fishing. Iowa Conservation Commission, Des Moines, Iowa. 323pp.

Pflieger, W.L.  1997.  The fishes of Missouri.  Missouri Department of Conservation, Jefferson City, Missouri.  372 pp.

Phillips, G.L., W.D. Schmid, and J.C. Underhill.  1982.  Fishes of the Minnesota region.  University of Minnesota Press, Minneapolis, Minnesota.  248 pp.

Robison, H.W., and T.M. Buchanan. 1988.  Fishes of Arkansas.  University of Arkansas Press, Fayetteville, Arkansas.  536 pp.

Trautman, M.B.  1981.  The fishes of Ohio.  Revised Edition.  Ohio State University Press in collaboration with the Ohio Sea Grant Program Center for Lake Erie Area Research,  Columbus, Ohio.  782 pp.

Data Sources:

Berry, C.R., D.L. Galat, and M.L. Wildhaber.  2004.  Fish distribution and abundance. 

Volume 3.  Population structure and habitat use of benthic fishes along the Missouri and lower Yellowstone rivers.  U.S. Geological Survey, Cooperative Units, South Dakota State University, Brookings, South Dakota.

Fairport Fish Management and Hatchery.  2003.  Field notes and unpublished reports.

Southeast Management District, Fisheries Bureau, Iowa Department of Natural Resources, Fairport, Iowa.

Harrison, H.M.  1951.  General survey of the Des Moines River below Des Moines.

Quarterly Biology Reports 3(3):32-45.

Iowa State University Museum.  1985.  Collection of fishes catalog, 1878-1985.   Iowa

State University, Ames, Iowa.

Kallemeyn, L.W.  1977.  Fish and fish food organisms in various habitats of the Missouri

River in South Dakota, Nebraska, and Iowa.  FWS/OBS-77/25.  U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Washington, D.C.

Lake MacBride Fish Management.  2002.  Field notes and unpublished reports. 

Southeast Management District, Fisheries Bureau, Iowa Department of Natural Resources, Solon, Iowa.

LGL Ecological Research Associates.  1981.  Study of fish in the main channel of the

Mississippi River between river miles 500 and 513.5.  Final Report.  Great II Fish and Wildlife Management Work Group and Department of the Army, Corps of Engineers, Rock Island, Illinois.

Long Term Resource Monitoring Program.  2002.   Pool 13 database, 1990-2001.  Upper

Midwest Environmental Science Center, Bellevue, Iowa.

Manchester Fish Management.  2002.  Field notes and unpublished reports.  Northeast

Management District, Fisheries Bureau, Iowa Department of Natural Resources, Manchester, Iowa.

Meek, S.E.  1892.  Report upon the fishes of Iowa, based upon observations and

collections mad during 1889, 1890, 1891.  Bulletin of the United States Fish Commission 10(1890):217-248.

Nord, R.C.  1967.  A compendium of fishery information on the Upper Mississippi River.

Upper Mississippi River Conservation Committee, Rock Island, Illinois.

Rathbun Fish Management and Hatchery.  2003.  Field notes and unpublished reports.

Southeast Management District, Fisheries Bureau, Iowa Department of Natural Resources, Moravia, Iowa.

Smith, P.W,. and A.C. Lopinot.  1966.  The 1966 survey of fishes from the mouths of

Mississippi River tributaries, Appendix B, pp.226-233, Illinois State Natural History Survey, Champaign, Illinois.

UMRCC.  1953.  Revised species list- northern section of the river.  Pages 19-32 in

Proceedings of the Ninth Annual Meeting, Upper Mississippi River Conservation Committee, Rock Island, Illinois.

Wenke, T.L.  1965.  Some ecological relationships of mayflies, caddisflies, and fish in

the Mississippi River near Keokuk, Iowa.  Ph.D. dissertation.  Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa.

Additional References:

Bailey, R.M., J.E. Fitch, E.S. Herald, E.A. Lachner, C.C. Lindsey, C.R. Robins, and W.B. Scott.  1970.  A list of common and scientific names of fishes from the United States and Canada.  American Fisheries Society Special Publication No. 6. 149 pp.

Becker, G.C.  1983.  Fishes of Wisconsin.  University of Wisconsin Press, Madison. 1052 pp.

Boone, E.A., Jr., and T.J. Timmons.  1995.  Density and natural mortality of paddlefish, Polyodon spathula, in an unfished Cumberland River subimpoundment, South Cross Creek Reservoir, Tennessee.  Journal of Freshwater Ecology 10:421-431.

Burkhead, N.M., and R.E. Jenkins. 1991.  Fishes.  Pages 321-409 in K. Terwilliger, coordinator.  Virginia's endangered species: proceedings of a symposium.  McDonald and Woodward Publishing Company, Blacksburg, Virginia.

Burr, B. M., and M.L. Warren, Jr.  1986.  A distributional atlas of Kentucky fishes.  Kentucky Nature Preserves Commission, Scientific and Technical Series No. 4., Frankfort, Kentucky.  398 pp.

Carlson, D.M., and P.S. Bronislawsky.  1981.  The paddlefish, Polyodon spathula, fisheries of the midwestern United States.  Fisheries 6(2):17-22, 26-27.

Carlson, D.M., M.K. Kettler, S.E. Fisher, and G.S. Whitt.  1982.  Low genetic variability in paddlefish populations. Copeia 1982:721-725.

Clay, W.M.  1975.  The fishes of Kentucky.  Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources, Frankfort, Kentucky.  416 pp.

Cooper, E.L.  1983.  Fishes of Pennsylvania and the northeastern United States.  Pennsylvania State University Press, University Park, Pennsylvania. 243 pp.

Crance, J.H.  1987.  Habitat suitability index curves for paddlefish, developed by the Delphi technique.  North American Journal of Fisheries Management 7:123-130.

Dillard, J.G., L.K. Graham, and T.R. Russell, editors. 1986.  The paddlefish: status, management and propagation. American Fisheries Society, North Central Division, Bethesda, Maryland.  Special Publication 7.

Fitz, R.B.  1966.  Unusual food of a paddlefish (Polyodon spathula) in Tennessee.  Copeia 1966(2):356.

Gelwicks, G.T.  1995.  Fish movement between the lower Missouri River and a managed floodplain wetland in Missouri.  Master’s thesis. University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri. 190 pp.

Gengerke, T.A. 1986.  Distribution and abundance of paddlefish in the United States.  Pages 22-35 in J.G. Dillard, L. K. Graham, and T. R. Russell, editors.  The paddlefish: status, management and propagation, North Central Division, American Fisheries Society, Special Publication Number 7.

Graham, K.  1997.  Contemporary status of the North American paddlefish, Polyodon spathula.  Environmental Biology of Fishes 48: 279-289.

Hesse, L.W., and J.R. Carreiro.  1997.  The status of paddlefish, pallid sturgeon, lake sturgeon, and shovelnose sturgeon.  Mississippi Interstate Cooperative Resource Association (MICRA), Bettendorf, Iowa.  52pp.

Hoxmeier, R.J.H., and D.R. DeVries.  1996.  Status of paddlefish in the Alabama waters of the Tennessee River. North American Journal of Fisheries Management 16:935-938.

Jennings, C.A., and D.M. Wilson.  1993.  Spawning activity of paddlefish (Polyodon spathula) in the lower Black River, Wisconsin.  Journal of Freshwater Ecology 8:261-262.

Kelly, G., editor.  1986.  Animal habitat relations handbook.  Missouri Department of Conservation and U.S.D.A. Forest Service, Jefferson City, Missouri.  293 pp.

Kroll, K.J., J.P. Van Eenemnaam, S.I. Doroshov, J.E. Hamilton, and T.R. Russell.  1992.  Effect of water temperature and formulated diets on growth and survival of larval paddlefish.  Transactions of the American Fisheries Society. 121:538-543.

Lee, D.S., C.R. Gilbert, C.H. Hocutt, R.E. Jenkins, D.E. McAllister, and J.R. Stauffer, Jr.  1980.  Atlas of North American freshwater fishes.  North Carolina State Museum of Natural History, Raleigh, North Carolina.  867 pp.

Lein, G. M., and D.R. DeVries.  1998.  Paddlefish in the Alabama River drainage: population characteristics and the adult spawning migration.  Transactions of the American Fisheries Society 127:441-454.

Mettee, M.F., P.E. O'Neil, and J.M. Pierson.  1996.  Fishes of Alabama and the Mobile Basin.  Oxmoor House, Birmingham, Alabama.  820 pp.

Michaletz, P.H.  1981.  Maintenance of the Osage River paddlefish fishery.  Missouri Department of Conservation Final Report D-J Project F-1-R-30.  Study S-28. 95pp.

Michaletz, P.H., C.F. Rabeni, W.W. Taylor, T.R. Russell.  1982.  Feeding ecology and growth of young-of-the-year paddlefish in hatchery ponds.  Transactions of the American Fisheries Society 111:700-709.

Mizzi, J.A.  1994.  Zooplankton, macroinvertebrate, herptile, and ichthyofaunal biodiversity of riverine habitat on the upper Missouri River.  Master’s thesis, South Dakota State University, Brookings, South Dakota.  130 pp.

Moen, C.T., D.L. Scarnecchia, and J.S. Ramsey.  1992.  Paddlefish movements and habitat use in Pool 13 of the upper Mississippi River during abnormally low river stages and discharges.  North American Journal of Fisheries Management 12:744-751.

Muncy, R J., G. J. Atchison, R.V. Bulkley, B.W. Menzel, L.G. Perry, and R.C. Summerfelt.  1979.  Effects of suspended solids and sediments on reproduction and early life of warmwater fish: a review.  U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Corvallis, Oregon.  101 pp.

Page, L.M., and B.M. Burr.  1991.  A field guide to freshwater fishes: North America north of Mexico.  Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, Massachusetts. 432 pp.

Parker, B.J.  1988.  Status of the paddlefish, Polyodon spathula, in Canada.  Canadian Field-Naturalist 102(2): 291-295.

Pasch, R.W., P.A. Hackney, and J.A. Holbrook II.  1980.  Ecology of paddlefish in Old Hickory Reservoir, Tennessee, with emphasis on first-year life history.  Transactions of the American Fisheries Society 109(2):157-167.

Pflieger, W.L.  1971.  A distributional study of Missouri fishes.  University of Kansas Publications, Museum of Natural History  20(3):225-570.

Pflieger, W.L.  1989a.  Aquatic community classification system for Missouri.  Missouri Department of Conservation.  Jefferson City, Missouri.  Aquatic Series No. 19. 70 pp. plus Supplement.

Pflieger, W.L.  1989b.  The stream resources of Missouri.  D-J Project - F-1-R-28.  Study S-20.  Missouri Department of Conservation, Columbia, Missouri.  

Pitman, V.M., and J.O. Parks.  1994.  Habitat use and movement of young paddlefish (Polyodon spathula).  Journal of Freshwater Ecology 9:181-190.

Purkett, C.A., Jr.  1961.  Reproduction and early development of the paddlefish.  Transactions of the American Fisheries Society 90: 125-129.

Purkett, C.A., Jr.  1963.  The paddlefish fishery of the Osage River and Lake of the Ozarks, Missouri.  Transactions of the American Fisheries Society 92(3): 239-244.

Reed, B.C., W.E. Kelso, and D.A. Rutherford.  1992.  Growth, fecundity and mortality of paddlefish in Louisiana. Transactions of the American Fisheries Society. 121:378-384.

Robins, C.R., R.M. Bailey, C.E. Bond, J.R. Brooker, E.A. Lachner, R.N. Lea, and W.B. Scott.  1991.  Common and scientific names of fishes from the United States and Canada.  American Fisheries Society, Special Publication 20, Bethesda, Maryland. 183 pp.

Robinson, J.W.  1967.  Observations on the life history, movement and harvest of the paddlefish, Polyodon spathula, in Montana.  Proceedings of the Montana Academy of Science 26: 33-44.

Rosen, R.A., and D.C. Hales. 1981.  Feeding of paddlefish, Polyodon spathula.  Copeia 1981(2):441-455.

Rosen, R.A., D.C. Hales, and D.G. Unkenholz.  1982.  Biology and exploitation of paddlefish in the Missouri River below Gavins Point Dam.  Transactions of the American Fisheries Society 111:216-222.

Russell, T.R.  1973a.  A study of artificial propagation of the paddlefish.  Missouri Department of Conservation D-J Project F-1-R-21, Study S-5, Job Nos 1&2. Final Report 16pp.

Sheehan, R.J., W.M. Lewis, and  L.R. Bodensteiner.  1990.  Winter habitat requirements and overwintering of riverine fishes.  Southern Illinois Fisheries Research Laboratory, Carbondale, Illinois.  D-J Project F-79-R, Study 101.  234 pp.

Smith, C.L.  1985.  The inland fishes of New York state.  New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, Albany, New York.  522 pp.

Smith, P.W.  1979.  The fishes of Illinois.  University of Illinois Press, Urbana, Illinois.  314 pp.

Southall, P.D., and W.A. Hubert.  1984.  Habitat use by paddlefish in the upper Mississippi River.  Transactions of the American Fisheries Society 113:125-131.

Sparrowe, R.D.  1986.  Threats to paddlefish habitat.  Pages 36-45 in J.G. Dillard, L.K. Graham, and T.R. Russell, editors. The paddlefish: status, management and propagation, North Central Division, American Fisheries Society, Special Publication Number 7.

Starnes, W.C.  1995.  Taxonomic validation for fish species on the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Category 2 species list.  28 pp.

Stockard, C.R.  1907.  Observations on the natural history of Polydon spathula.  American Midland Naturalist 41: 753-766.

Thom, R.H., and J.H. Wilson.  1980.  The natural divisions of Missouri.  Transactions of the Missouri Academy of Science  14:9-24.

Unkenholz, D.G.  1977.  Investigation of paddlefish populations in South Dakota and development of management plans.  South Dakota Fisheries Report No. 78-1. 34pp.

Wallus, R.  1986.  Paddlefish reproduction in the Cumberlandand Tennessee river systems.  Transactions of the American Fisheries Society 115:424-428.

Wilkinson, T.  1997.  Plight of the paddlefish.  Wildlife Conservation, March/April, pp. 52-55.

Photo Credits:

Upper Left:       Photo courtesy of Konrad P. Schmidt, copyright Konrad P. Schmidt.

Upper Right:     Photo courtesy of Konrad P. Schmidt, copyright Konrad P. Schmidt.