Elassoma okefenokee
Böhlke 1956
Family Elassomatidae
The Okefenokee pygmy sunfish is a member of the pygmy sunfish family. It has dark brown bars on the side of the body that are darkest posteriorly and many black specks and spots on the head and body. There are two large cream-colored spots at the caudal fin base and the lips are typically light-colored in the front except in large males. Large males are shiny black with bright iridescent blue bars on the side of the body and below the eye. Okefenokee pygmy sunfish can be found in swamps, sloughs, ditches and backwaters of small streams. This species is usually found near vegetation or woody debris.
Status & distribution
- Status — Native freshwater
- Florida Distribution — Western and North Central and Peninsula drainages
- River Drainages — minor Gulf tributaries; Suwannee River, Withlacoochee River, Tampa Bay, Lake Okeechobee, St. John’s River and the St. Mary’s River