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SpeciesScientists Discover Mysterious New Fish in the Red Sea – and Have Never Seen It AgainOceanEye to eye with Britain's hidden sharks at SharkAdemy - OceanographicRiversIn October, biologists surveying a New York harbor for invasive fish pulled up a bright yellow one. It wasn't an invasive species at allOceanShedd Aquarium Sends Shark Eggs to Bolster Wild PopulationsSpeciesA rare fish has been found in Lake Ontario, North America, whose entire body is golden. It is a nati..OceanThe Great Sea Reef Is Fiji’s Wildest Dive, and a New Frontier for ConservationOceanEckerd College professor contributes to designating Biscayne Bay an Important Shark and Ray AreaSpeciesRio Verde Grande Survey Identifies Fifty-Three Fish Species Facing Flow ReductionsFisheriesAdams River Salmon Run in Thompson-NicolaIndiaHilsa production dropped 26% in five years, fisheries minister tells parliamentSpeciesScientists Discover Mysterious New Fish in the Red Sea – and Have Never Seen It AgainOceanEye to eye with Britain's hidden sharks at SharkAdemy - OceanographicRiversIn October, biologists surveying a New York harbor for invasive fish pulled up a bright yellow one. It wasn't an invasive species at allOceanShedd Aquarium Sends Shark Eggs to Bolster Wild PopulationsSpeciesA rare fish has been found in Lake Ontario, North America, whose entire body is golden. It is a nati..OceanThe Great Sea Reef Is Fiji’s Wildest Dive, and a New Frontier for ConservationOceanEckerd College professor contributes to designating Biscayne Bay an Important Shark and Ray AreaSpeciesRio Verde Grande Survey Identifies Fifty-Three Fish Species Facing Flow ReductionsFisheriesAdams River Salmon Run in Thompson-NicolaIndiaHilsa production dropped 26% in five years, fisheries minister tells parliament
EveryFish

Other fish

Seahorses, pufferfish, anglerfish, gobies, flying fish and the rest. 97 fish on EveryFish so far.

Many fish do not fit the familiar groups. Seahorses and pipefish, pufferfish and ocean sunfish, anglerfish, flying fish, oarfish, mudskippers, gobies, archerfish and lizardfish each belong to their own branches of the fish family tree. Among them are some of the strangest shapes and records in the animal world, from the heaviest bony fish to some of the smallest vertebrates known.

Record breakers

The ocean sunfish and its relatives are the heaviest bony fish: a bumphead sunfish found off the Azores in 2021 weighed about 2,700 kg. The giant oarfish is the longest bony fish, reaching around 8 metres. At the other end, Paedocypris progenetica, a tiny carp of Indonesian peat swamps, matures at under 8 mm. Seahorses are unusual in that males carry the eggs in a pouch and give birth.

Odd fish, familiar names

Pufferfish blow themselves up with water and carry a deadly poison, yet are eaten as fugu in Japan. Flying fish glide above the waves on wide pectoral fins. Archerfish of mangroves shoot down insects with jets of water. The Bombay duck, bombil, of India's west coast is a lizardfish, a soft, toothy fish eaten fresh or dried. Anglerfish of the deep sea fish for prey with a glowing lure.

Famous other fish

Giant oarfishThe longest bony fishHumpback anglerfishA deep-sea angler with a glowing lureBanded archerfishShoots insects with jets of water

Still to be written: Ocean sunfish, Leafy seadragon, Hippocampus kuda, Takifugu rubripes, Bombay duck.

Further reading

WaterRivers and lakesEstuaries and mangrovesCoasts and shelvesCoral reefsOpen oceanDeep seaPolar and cold seasCaves and springsBetween sea and river
UseFood fishFarmedAquarium fishSport fishingCulture and faithVenomous or dangerousInvasiveScience and research
OrderBest knownA to ZOldest firstNewest firstBy size
WorldNile perch Large freshwater predator native to Africa, now invasive in many lakes.Other · Rivers and lakes 🇵🇭 Philippines and 4 moreMilkfish The sole living species of the family Chanidae, found across the Indo-Pacific.Other · Coasts and shelves Southeast AsiaBumblebee goby Small striped freshwater and brackish gobies from AsiaOther · Rivers and lakes 🇮🇩 IndonesiaRed rainbowfish A bright red freshwater fish from Lake Sentani, Indonesia.Other · Rivers and lakes · 1907 WorldCommon fangtooth A small, black deep-sea fish with large fangs found worldwide.Other · Open ocean · 1833 WorldSilver dollar Round, silver tropical fish related to piranhas, popular in aquariums.Other · Rivers and lakes 🇨🇳 China and 4 moreCelestial Eye goldfish Fancy goldfish with upward-facing telescope eyesOther · Rivers and lakes WorldViperfish Deep-sea fish with fang-like teeth and bioluminescent lures in the genus Chauliodus.Other · Open ocean · 1801 🇺🇸 United States and 2 moreLongnose gar A primitive ray-finned fish with a long snout and armored scales found in North America.Other · Rivers and lakes · 1758 🇺🇸 United States and 2 moreGar Ancient armored fish with lung-like swim bladders found in North American waters.Ancient · Rivers and lakes · 1758 🇺🇸 United StatesMooneye A family of large-eyed North American fish known for their metallic eye shine.Other · Rivers and lakes · 1819 🇧🇼 Botswana and 1 moreAfrican tigerfish Predatory freshwater fish known for sharp teeth and leaping hunting behaviour.Other · Rivers and lakes · 1861 🇺🇬 Uganda and 2 moreSilver cyprinid A small pelagic fish from Lake Victoria that supports regional food security.Other · Rivers and lakes WorldLeopard bush fish A freshwater labyrinth fish from the Congo River basin kept in home aquariums.Other · Rivers and lakes 🇺🇬 UgandaNangnang fish A small freshwater fish from the Nile basin, prized as a fried snack in Uganda.Other · Rivers and lakes 🇺🇸 United States and 4 moreLargemouth bass A large freshwater predator native to North America, prized by anglers and invasive in many regions.Other · Rivers and lakes · 1802 🇺🇸 United StatesSpotted bass A North American freshwater fish known for dark spots below its lateral line.Other · Rivers and lakes 🇺🇸 United StatesGuadalupe bass A rare Texas endemic black bass prized by anglers for its fighting spirit.Other · Rivers and lakes 🇺🇸 United States and 1 moreMuskellunge Large freshwater predatory fish native to North America and the largest member of the pike family.Other · Rivers and lakes 🇸🇷 Suriname and 2 moreRedeye piranha A large freshwater fish from South America with a rhombus-shaped body and red eyes.Other · Rivers and lakes · 1766 🇧🇷 Brazil and 3 moreTambaqui A large freshwater fish from South America known for its heavy body and seed-eating habits.Other · Rivers and lakes 🇧🇷 Brazil and 4 moreWolf fish A predatory freshwater ray-finned fish found across Central and South America.Other · Rivers and lakes 🇺🇸 United States and 1 moreDesert pupfish Small desert fish that survives extreme heat and saltOther · Rivers and lakes · 1853 🇺🇸 United States and 1 moreMexican tetra A freshwater characin with surface and blind cave forms, studied for evolutionary biology.Other · Rivers and lakes 🇺🇸 United StatesWhite sucker A common North American freshwater cypriniform fish with fleshy lips used for bottom feeding.Other · Rivers and lakes · 1803 🇺🇸 United StatesDelta smelt A tiny, endangered fish native to California's Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta.Other · Rivers and lakes · 1963 Latin America and the CaribbeanLeporinus South American freshwater fish genus in the Anostomidae familyOther · Rivers and lakes Northern cavefish 🇺🇸 United StatesNorthern cavefish A blind fish living in caves of Kentucky and IndianaOther · Rivers and lakes 🇷🇺 RussiaComephorus Two species of pelagic sculpins endemic to Lake Baikal in Russia.Other · Rivers and lakes · 1800 🇨🇺 CubaCuban gar Large tropical freshwater predator native to western Cuba.Other · Rivers and lakes 🇧🇷 BrazilBanded leporinus A striped freshwater fish from the Amazon kept in home tanks and occasionally caught by anglers.Other · Rivers and lakes WorldSnakehead Elongated freshwater predators with air-breathing organs found in Asia and Africa.Other · Rivers and lakes WorldMarine hatchetfish Small deep-sea fish with a distinctive compressed body shape and bioluminescent camouflage.Other · Open ocean WorldFeatherbacks and knifefishes Freshwater bony-tongued fishes with long anal finsOther · Rivers and lakes WorldThree-spined stickleback Small northern fish known for rapid evolution and complex breeding.Other · Rivers and lakes WorldNinespine stickleback Small freshwater fish with variable spines found across the Northern Hemisphere.Other · Rivers and lakes EuropeEuropean bullhead Small freshwater sculpin found in European rivers and streams.Other · Rivers and lakes Southeast AsiaGiant snakehead A large freshwater predator from Southeast Asia known for air breathing and invasive potential.Other · Rivers and lakes Mariana snailfish WorldMariana snailfish A deep-sea fish from the Mariana Trench with transparent skin and large eggs.Other · Deep sea · 2017 Sabertooth fish WorldSabertooth fish Small deep-sea aulopiforms with large recurved teeth and tubular eyes.Other · Deep sea WorldAtlantic footballfish Deep-sea anglerfish with a glowing lureOther · Open ocean · 1837 🇧🇷 Brazil and 4 moreHoplias aimara A large freshwater predator from South America known for its size and mercury accumulation.Other · Rivers and lakes · 1846 WorldMormyrus A genus of weakly electric freshwater fish known for their elongated snouts.Other · Rivers and lakes · 1758 WorldSnailfish A family of marine ray-finned fishes found from shallow coasts to the deepest ocean trenches.Other · Coasts and shelves · 1861 🇨🇦 Canada and 1 moreGoldeye A silver freshwater fish known for its smoked culinary form.Other · Rivers and lakes 🇦🇹 Austria and 4 moreEuropean mudminnow Small freshwater fish from Central and Eastern EuropeOther · Rivers and lakes East AsiaAmur pike A spotted freshwater pike native to east Asia.Other · Rivers and lakes 🇷🇺 Russia and 3 moreBurbot A coldwater freshwater fish with a chin whisker, native to the Northern Hemisphere.Other · Rivers and lakes · 1758
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Photo credits on this page

The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.

The weekly digest

Every Monday: the fish of the day, new pages on EveryFish, and the conferences and anniversaries of the week ahead.