Baitfish Species

I have caught quite a few different minnows in the trap this weekend. I know what most of them are; central mudminnow, Stickleback, Dace,.. but two elude me.
After consulting the Baitfish Primer I believe I have Striped Shiner (the blue one) and Pearl Dace (the orange one). I'm not sure. They look like ideal baitfish. I'd like to be more certain before i put them in my bait bucket. Thoughts?

The Pearl Dace?

Top one looks like a juvenile common shiner

Bottom one, not sure. But could definitely be a dace of some kind or a juvenile creek chub

The first one is more than likely a common shiner which is very similar to a striped shiner. The differences are that a striped shiner has stripes (duh) on the back that converge behind the dorsal fin and the scales behind the head are larger/less crowded. Striped shiners are mainly found in the southern part of the province, while commons are everywhere. Since you posted in the Northern lakes section....

The second one is something I'll have to look into a bit. I'll try to get back to you later this evening.

After checking the ROM book, it looks like you may be correct in calling the 2nd fish a northern pearl dace. That being said, the book also says that the NPD is very difficult to tell apart from the lake chub. If the dorsal fin is rounded, it's a dace. If the back edge of the dorsal fin is concave, it is likely a chub. The NPD does have a spot at the base of the tail which yours seems to show.

Thank-you Fossil Fish, very interesting reading and yes, identifying minnow species is very difficult. I just go with my gut, what are the most common and abundant species in the system I am fishing and figure what I catch belong to that group. But there are always surprises..

Thanks! I did notice the Striped Shiners are mostly southern ontario, but didn't want to rule anything out. These shiners are blue, I think the Lakers will love them.
Ive seen a million chubs of many variety, my gut tells me the one i believe is NPD is definitely not a chub, i'll go with NPD, definitely a shiny minnow thats for sure.

Thanks for the insight, These are some of the fattest shiners ive seen. Gonna be a good opener (walleye in zone 15). Minnow bucket is brimming.

I will check the dorsal fin to see if dace/chub. Minnows are cool.

They aren't everyone's cup of tea, but for guys like me that are species hunters, they can be a challenge. Strictly sight fishing with tiny hooks. While technically not a minnow, here's a brook stickleback (Culaea inconstans) I caught yesterday using a #26 hook. Maybe 1.5" long

Very interesting hobby Fossil Fish.

What are some of the less common, native species you've caught?

Let's see....In addition to the stickleback, as far as rarer species go, I've caught fathead minnow, blacknose dace, blackside darter, redbelly dace, rosyface shiner, goldfish, spotfin shiner, bluntnose minnow, mimic shiner, hornyhead chub and northern sunfish all on hook and line. Most of these aren't particularly rare, but they aren't targeted much either. I've also caught a golden redhorse that beat the Ontario record listed in the ROM book. 19.5" listed as the provincial record, mine was about 21" but I didn't realize it's significance at the time. Not to hijack a thread, but I have pics of all these species if anyone is interested.

Not hijacking at all, this is a minnow species thread..

Yes I'm interested, let's see some pics of different minnow species. I will admit, I am weak in this area of identification.

Nice stickleback BTW.

OK, you asked for it. First off is a blackside darter (Percina maculata). These are most similar with the river darter, but the river darter has dark blotches at the front and back of the dorsal fin.

Logperch (Percina caprodes). The largest darter in Ontario and the stripes set it apart from any other species.

Bluntnose minnow (Pimephales notatus). Nose is blunt -obviously- and is similar to a spottail shiner. Bluntnose minnow had small, crowded scales behind the head and a lateral line that ends in a spot at the base of the tail.

Fallfish (Semotilus corporalis). The largest minnow in Ontario. The Ontario record is 47cm long.