News
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

All fish

632 fish so far, best known first. 555 more are on the list to be written.

🇨🇳 ChinaChinese paddlefish A giant freshwater predator from China that is now extinct.Ancient · Rivers and lakes · 1862 🇨🇦 Canada and 1 moreGoldeye A silver freshwater fish known for its smoked culinary form.Other · Rivers and lakes 🇨🇦 Canada and 1 moreLake chub A small cold-water minnow native to Canada and the northern US.Carp · Rivers and lakes 🇺🇸 United States and 2 moreBluegill A common North American sunfish known for its blue gill covers and popularity with anglers.Perch-like · Rivers and lakes · 1854 WorldBasking shark The second-largest living fish, a slow-moving filter feeder found in temperate oceans worldwide.Shark · Coasts and shelves · 1765 🇷🇺 Russia and 3 moreBurbot A coldwater freshwater fish with a chin whisker, native to the Northern Hemisphere.Other · Rivers and lakes · 1758 🇷🇺 Russia and 1 moreRuffe A small, aggressive freshwater fish native to Eurasia that has become a major invasive pest in North America.Perch-like · Rivers and lakes · 1758 🇧🇷 Brazil and 4 moreArapaima Giant air-breathing freshwater fish of the AmazonOther · Rivers and lakes · 1822 🇺🇸 United States and 2 moreRock bass A small, red-eyed freshwater sunfish native to North America.Perch-like · Rivers and lakes 🇺🇸 United StatesCrappie Two species of North American freshwater sunfish prized by anglers for sport and food.Perch-like · Rivers and lakes 🇧🇮 Burundi and 3 moreGiant cichlid The largest living cichlid species, native to Lake Tanganyika in Africa.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes · 1899 WorldConvict tang Striped marine surgeonfish found across the Indo-Pacific.Reef fish · Coasts and shelves · 1758 🇨🇳 China and 3 moreAsian swamp eel A freshwater, air-breathing fish native to Asia and introduced elsewhere.Eel · Rivers and lakes 🇺🇸 United States and 1 morePacific lamprey An anadromous parasitic jawless fish found along the Pacific Rim.Ancient · Rivers and lakes · 1872 🇯🇵 JapanNigorobuna Wild carp from Lake Biwa used for fermented sushi.Carp · Rivers and lakes 🇺🇸 United StatesWhite bass A silver-striped freshwater fish native to North American rivers and lakes.Other · Rivers and lakes 🇺🇸 United States and 1 moreAlewife A small North American herring that migrates between sea and rivers.Herring · Coasts and shelves WorldAnglerfish Ray-finned fish using a modified dorsal fin ray as a lure to catch prey.Other · Coasts and shelves · 1829 WorldOarfish Extremely long pelagic fish known for their ribbon-like bodies and association with sea serpent myths.Other · Open ocean · 1772 🇦🇷 Argentina and 4 moreArgentinian silverside A large, adaptable silverside native to South America.Other · Rivers and lakes WorldRoundnose grenadier A large deep-sea fish from the northern Atlantic Ocean with a rounded head and long tail.Other · Deep sea 🇯🇵 Japan and 1 moreGiant grenadier A large deep-sea rattail from the North Pacific.Other · Open ocean 🇺🇸 United States and 4 moreMosquitofish Small North American fish introduced globally for mosquito control.Livebearer · Rivers and lakes 🇧🇷 Brazil and 4 moreRed-bellied piranha A widespread South American freshwater fish known for its omnivorous diet and shoaling behavior.Other · Rivers and lakes 🇧🇷 Brazil and 1 moreRed-bellied Pacu A large South American freshwater fish related to piranhas, farmed for food and kept in aquariums.Other · Rivers and lakes 🇰🇭 Cambodia and 4 moreGyrinocheilus aymonieri A Southeast Asian freshwater fish known for its suction-like mouth and role in the aquarium trade.Other · Rivers and lakes 🇧🇷 BrazilBlack arowana A South American freshwater fish known for its dark colour and jumping hunting style.Other · Rivers and lakes 🇧🇷 Brazil and 1 moreSilver arowana Large South American freshwater predator with bone tongue.Other · Rivers and lakes Karonga tilapia 🇲🇼 Malawi and 2 moreKaronga tilapia Endangered cichlid from Lake Malawi and the Shire River.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes WorldCichlid Diverse freshwater fish family known for parental care and rapid evolution.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes · 1835 Fire eel 🇹🇭 Thailand and 4 moreFire eel Large spiny eel with red markings from Southeast AsiaOther · Rivers and lakes 🇹🇭 Thailand and 3 morePeacock eel A small freshwater spiny eel from Southeast Asia.Eel · Rivers and lakes OceaniaBanded archerfish A silvery fish that spits water jets to catch prey.Perch-like · Estuaries and mangroves · 1767 🇨🇳 China and 4 moreThree spot gourami Hardy freshwater fish native to Southeast Asia with distinct side spots.Other · Rivers and lakes WorldParrotfish Reef-dwelling wrasses with beak-like teeth that grind coral into sand.Reef fish · Coasts and shelves WorldWrasse A large family of colourful marine fish known for sex change and cleaning symbiosis.Reef fish · Coasts and shelves WorldDamselfish Small marine fish known for aggressive territorial behaviour and reef farming.Reef fish · Coasts and shelves WorldLionfish Venomous marine fish of the genus Pterois known for striking stripes and invasive spread.Ray · Coral reefs · 1900 WorldTriggerfish Armoured reef fish with a locking dorsal spineReef fish · Coasts and shelves · 1810 WorldMoray eel A global family of elongated marine eels known for their powerful jaws and patterned skin.Eel · Coasts and shelves WorldPorcupinefish Spiny marine fish that inflate into a defensive sphere to deter predators.Other · Coasts and shelves WorldGoatfish Benthic fish with chin barbels found in tropical and temperate waters worldwide.Other · Coasts and shelves · 1758 🇲🇽 Mexico and 2 moreMexican molly Small livebearing fish from Mexico and Central America.Livebearer · Rivers and lakes 🇺🇸 United States and 1 moreSailfin molly Small livebearing fish with a large dorsal fin in males.Livebearer · Rivers and lakes · 1821 WorldBigeye trevally A large marine fish found in tropical oceans, known for its nocturnal hunting and distinctive dark dorsal fin.Other · Coasts and shelves · 1825 WorldBluefin trevally Large tropical marine predator with electric blue finsPerch-like · Coasts and shelves · 1833 WorldYellowstripe goatfish A small Indo-Pacific reef fish with yellow fins and shrimp-like taste.Other · Coasts and shelves WorldEmperor red snapper Large Indo-Pacific reef snapper with distinctive juvenile bands.Perch-like · Coasts and shelves · 1816

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.