Redline Darter

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French Broad Watershed Aquatic Life
The over four thousand miles of the French Broad
River Watershed in North Carolina supports an
incredible wide array of aquatic life. This was
not always the case as pollution once left the
river without a thriving aquatic population.
There are now 97 species of fish species, 26
species of salamanders, 9 turtle species, 5
native mussle species, and 9 native crayfish
types. This is fact does not begin to display the
wide variety of species the river has to offer,
but it does show off some of the common,
beautiful, and rare species of the French Broad.
Brook Trout
Brown Trout
Muskie
Smallmouth Bass
Catfish
Redbreast Sunfish
Rock Bass
Greenside Darter
Redline Darter
Blueside Darter
Three Lined Salamander
Hellbender Salamander
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Freshwater Drum
Tangerine Darter
Mountain Madtom
Eastern Painted Turtle
Eastern Spiny Softshell
Appalachian Elktoe
Slippershell Mussel
American Brook Lampray
RiverLink is a regional non-profit spearheading
the economic and environmental revitalization of
the French Broad River Watershed.
French Broad River Crayfish