Etheostoma phytophilum is a rare species of fish in the perch family

Percidae

The Percidae are a family of perciform fish found in fresh and brackish waters of the Northern Hemisphere. The family contains about 200 species in ten genera...

 known by the common name rush darter. It is endemic to Alabama

Alabama

Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...

 in the United States, where it occurs in three river systems. It was federally listed as an endangered species

Endangered species

An endangered species is a population of organisms which is at risk of becoming extinct because it is either few in numbers, or threatened by changing environmental or predation parameters...

 of the United States on August 9, 2011, a ruling which will take effect on September 8, 2011.

This fish measures about 5 centimeters in length. It is similar to its relative, the goldstripe darter

Etheostoma parvipinne

The common name of Etheostoma parvipinne is the goldstripe darter. It is one of the 324 fish species found in Tennessee....

 (Etheostoma parvipinne), but with paler coloration.

The rush darter lives in clear shallow waters where it shelters around the root masses of aquatic vegetation. It tolerates a variety of substrates, including sand, silt

Silt

Silt is granular material of a size somewhere between sand and clay whose mineral origin is quartz and feldspar. Silt may occur as a soil or as suspended sediment in a surface water body...

, and gravel. The fry

Spawn (biology)

Spawn refers to the eggs and sperm released or deposited, usually into water, by aquatic animals. As a verb, spawn refers to the process of releasing the eggs and sperm, also called spawning...

 develop in wetland

Wetland

A wetland is an area of land whose soil is saturated with water either permanently or seasonally. Wetlands are categorised by their characteristic vegetation, which is adapted to these unique soil conditions....

 pools. Little else is known about the fish's life history

Biological life cycle

A life cycle is a period involving all different generations of a species succeeding each other through means of reproduction, whether through asexual reproduction or sexual reproduction...

.

This fish is currently known from three Alabama river drainages: the Clear Creek drainage in Winston County

Winston County, Alabama

Winston County is a county of the U.S. state of Alabama, formerly known as Hancock County before 1858.Its name is in honor of John A. Winston, the 15th Governor of Alabama. As of 2010, the population was 24,484. Its county seat is Double Springs....

, some springs in Jefferson County

Jefferson County, Alabama

Jefferson County is the most populous county in the U.S. state of Alabama, with its county seat being located in Birmingham.As of the 2010 U.S. Census, the population of Jefferson County was 658,466...

, and Little Cove Creek drainage in Etowah County

Etowah County, Alabama

Etowah County is a county of the U.S. state of Alabama. Its name is from the Cherokee language, which means "edible tree". It is the center of the Gadsden Metropolitan Area which includes Etowah and Cherokee Counties. As of 2010 the population was 104,430. Its county seat is Gadsden...

. Its total range is contained in 14.5 kilometers of waterways.

This species is threatened by the degradation of its habitat from excessive sediment

Sediment

Sediment is naturally occurring material that is broken down by processes of weathering and erosion, and is subsequently transported by the action of fluids such as wind, water, or ice, and/or by the force of gravity acting on the particle itself....

ation.