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

Extinct or extinct in the wild

Gone, or surviving only in captivity. 9 fish on EveryFish so far.

Extinct means there is no reasonable doubt that the last individual of a species has died. Extinct in the Wild means a species survives only in captivity or in places outside its natural range. Fish have been lost to dams, drained wetlands, pumped-out springs, pollution, overfishing and introduced predators. Dozens of fish species have been declared extinct, and many more are feared lost but not yet confirmed.

Recent losses

The Chinese paddlefish of the Yangtze, which could grow to several metres, was declared extinct in 2022; it had not been seen since 2003, and dams had cut it off from its spawning grounds. The blue walleye of North America's Great Lakes disappeared by the 1980s after overfishing and pollution. The Tecopa pupfish of California, whose hot springs were rebuilt for bathhouses, was among the first fish removed from the US endangered species list because it had gone extinct.

Saved only in tanks

Some fish now survive only because people breed them. Several small livebearers and pupfish of Mexico exist mainly in aquariums and research collections, and hobbyists help keep them going. The Catarina pupfish of Mexico lasted in captivity after disappearing in the wild, but the last captive fish died in 2014. Cases like these show how small populations kept in a few tanks remain fragile without wild habitat to return to.

Famous extinct or extinct in the wild fish

Chinese paddlefishDeclared extinct in 2022 Tecopa pupfishTecopa pupfishLost when its springs were altered

Still to be written: Blue walleye, Harelip sucker, Catarina pupfish.

Further reading

GroupSharkRayCarpCatfishSalmonidHerringCodTunaPerch-likeCichlidReef fishEelFlatfishLivebearerAncientOther
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
WorldMegalodon Extinct giant mackerel shark from the Miocene to Pliocene epochs.Shark · Coasts and shelves · 1843 🇺🇸 United StatesCladoselache Extinct Late Devonian shark-like fish known for well-preserved fossils and streamlined body.Shark · Coasts and shelves 🇧🇷 Brazil and 4 moreMawsonia Extinct giant coelacanth from the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods.Ancient · Rivers and lakes · 1907 🇺🇸 United States and 3 moreStethacanthus Extinct Devonian-Carboniferous shark with a distinctive anvil-shaped dorsal fin.Shark · Coasts and shelves · 1874 🇺🇸 United States and 1 moreKnightia Extinct herring-like fish from the Green River Formation, famous for its abundant fossils.Herring · Rivers and lakes · 1856 Tecopa pupfish 🇺🇸 United StatesTecopa pupfish Extinct subspecies of killifish from California hot springs.Livebearer · Rivers and lakes · 1948 WorldCretoxyrhina Extinct Cretaceous mackerel shark known as the Ginsu sharkShark · Open ocean · 1822 🇨🇳 ChinaChinese paddlefish A giant freshwater predator from China that is now extinct.Ancient · Rivers and lakes · 1862 🇧🇴 Bolivia and 3 moreSacabambaspis Extinct armored jawless fish from the Ordovician period of Gondwana.Ancient · Coasts and shelves · 1986

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.