Twenty-three microsatellite DNA loci for population genetic studies and parentage assignment in orangethroat darter, Etheostoma spectabile.

The genus Etheostoma is a species-rich and ecologically important group of fishes in North America. The orangethroat darter (Etheostoma spectabile) is widely distributed and abundant in headwater streams throughout the central Midwest, and is an excellent model for ecological and mating system studies. We developed 23 novel, polymorphic, and independent microsatellite loci for E. spectabile. We found from two to 14 alleles per locus, and observed heterozygosities ranged from 0.39 to 1.0. These markers, in combination with others isolated from Etheostoma taxa, will be useful for ecological and evolutionary studies in the genus.