After a female has constructed a nest, she intices a male by nudging the male's abdomen with her snout. After breeding, the pair lay side by side, with the male curling his caudal fin around the females mouth. After several pairings, spawning can be noticed by a quivering in the female. The female guards the nest for the first day, then the male takes over for the remainder of egg and fry protection.
Mating System: monogamous
Spawning occurs between May and July. The female fans out a saucer shaped nest in a soft substrate, then removes larger elements with her snout. The male is nearby during the construction of the nest. Nests are typically in 2 to 4 feet of water and range in diameter and depth according to the substrate. On few occasions nest lay beneath a log or other forms of structure. Females produce between 2,000 and 3,800 eggs. Spawning occurs five times over a one hour period. The male watches over the nest after the first day for up to ten days. When the eggs then hatch, they stay close to the male for up to two weeks.
Breeding interval: Black bullheads breed once yearly.
Breeding season: Black bullheads breed from May to July.
Range number of offspring: 2,000 to 3,800.
Range time to hatching: 5 to 10 days.
Range time to independence: 12 to 17 days.
Average time to independence: 14 days.
Range age at sexual or reproductive maturity (female): 1 to 3 years.
Range age at sexual or reproductive maturity (male): 1 to 3 years.
Key Reproductive Features: iteroparous ; seasonal breeding ; gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate); sexual ; fertilization (External ); oviparous
Average number of offspring: 3150.
Prior to breeding, females construct a nest using pelvic and anal fins. After breeding the female guards the nest for the first day. After the first day males take over and guard the nest for up to 10 days until the eggs hatch. For the next two weeks the young remain close to the male.
Parental Investment: pre-fertilization (Provisioning, Protecting: Male, Female); pre-hatching/birth (Provisioning: Male, Female, Protecting: Male, Female); pre-independence (Provisioning: Male, Protecting: Male)