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OceanSouth Korea’s Celebrity Shark Raises Bigger Questions About Climate Change And Ocean ConservationIndiaFrom pickles to fish farming: 3 farmers show how innovation can transform agricultureRiversEl Niño seen disrupting fish migration patternsSpeciesScientists 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 ConservationFisheriesPrince William Sound reports lowest pink salmon harvest since the late 1970sOceanSouth Korea’s Celebrity Shark Raises Bigger Questions About Climate Change And Ocean ConservationIndiaFrom pickles to fish farming: 3 farmers show how innovation can transform agricultureRiversEl Niño seen disrupting fish migration patternsSpeciesScientists 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 ConservationFisheriesPrince William Sound reports lowest pink salmon harvest since the late 1970s
EveryFish

Least concern

Widespread and not thought to be at risk. 286 fish on EveryFish so far.

Least Concern is the IUCN Red List category for species that have been assessed and are not close to qualifying as threatened. They are usually widespread and abundant. Many important food fish are in this category, including hilsa, rohu, skipjack tuna and Atlantic herring. Least Concern describes a species as a whole, worldwide; it does not mean that every local stock is healthy or well managed.

Common, not always safe

A fish can be Least Concern globally while particular populations are in trouble. Hilsa is widespread across the Bay of Bengal and its rivers, but its runs up the Ganges collapsed after the Farakka Barrage. Rohu and catla are abundant because they are farmed in huge numbers, while wild river stocks have declined. Herring stocks have crashed and recovered in different seas over the past century. Fisheries are managed stock by stock, so local assessments matter as much as the global category.

Back from the brink

Some fish have moved into Least Concern after recovering. The Atlantic bluefin tuna was listed as Endangered in 2011 after decades of overfishing; strict quotas set by the Atlantic tuna commission, ICCAT, and better enforcement let stocks recover, and in 2021 it was reassessed as Least Concern. Yellowfin tuna was moved from Near Threatened to Least Concern in the same update, though scientists warn that yellowfin in the Indian Ocean is still overfished.

Famous least concern fish

IlishLeast Concern globally, though local runs have fallenRohuAbundant thanks to farmingCatlaWidespread in farms and riversIndian mackerelA common schooling fish of the Indo-PacificSkipjack tunaThe most caught tunaAtlantic bluefin tunaMoved from Endangered to Least Concern in 2021Yellowfin tunaMoved to Least Concern in 2021Atlantic herringWidespread in the North Atlantic

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
Fire eel 🇹🇭 Thailand and 4 moreFire eel Large spiny eel with red markings from Southeast AsiaOther · Rivers and lakes 🇪🇬 Egypt and 4 moreNile tilapia A hardy cichlid farmed globally for food.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes · 1758 🇺🇸 United States and 4 moreSea lamprey A jawless, parasitic fish native to the Northern Hemisphere that attacks other fish.Ancient · Rivers and lakes · 1758 🇮🇳 India and 4 moreRohu A large silver carp from South Asian rivers, farmed for food and prized as a game fish.Carp · Rivers and lakes WorldNile perch Large freshwater predator native to Africa, now invasive in many lakes.Other · Rivers and lakes 🇺🇸 United States and 3 moreSockeye salmon Anadromous Pacific salmon known for red spawning colour and zooplankton diet.Salmonid · Rivers and lakes · 1792 🇧🇷 Brazil and 4 moreRedtail catfish A large South American catfish known for its red tail and popularity in the aquarium trade.Catfish · Rivers and lakes 🇭🇳 Honduras and 3 moreJaguar cichlid Large predatory cichlid from Central American lakesCichlid · Rivers and lakes Southeast AsiaKissing gourami A Southeast Asian freshwater fish known for its unique mouth-to-mouth sparring behaviour.Other · Rivers and lakes 🇺🇸 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 🇲🇽 Mexico and 2 moreTropical gar A small freshwater predator from Central America known for its armored scales and air-breathing ability.Ancient · Rivers and lakes 🇺🇸 United States and 2 moreGar Ancient armored fish with lung-like swim bladders found in North American waters.Ancient · Rivers and lakes · 1758 🇧🇯 Benin and 4 moreSaddled bichir A large African freshwater fish with primitive lungs and multiple dorsal finlets.Ancient · Rivers and lakes · 1845 🇧🇼 Botswana and 1 moreAfrican tigerfish Predatory freshwater fish known for sharp teeth and leaping hunting behaviour.Other · Rivers and lakes · 1861 🇳🇬 NigeriaGymnarchus African electric fish with a long dorsal fin used for swimming and sensing prey.Ancient · Rivers and lakes · 1829 🇺🇬 Uganda and 2 moreSilver cyprinid A small pelagic fish from Lake Victoria that supports regional food security.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 Sub-Saharan AfricaSynodontis A large African genus of spotted catfish known for squeaking sounds and belly-up swimming.Catfish · Rivers and lakes 🇰🇪 Kenya and 4 moreRipon barbel A large freshwater cyprinid from East African lakes and rivers.Carp · Rivers and lakes · 1900 🇺🇸 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 States and 2 morePumpkinseed A small freshwater fish native to eastern North America, known for its bright colours and red ear flap.Perch-like · Rivers and lakes · 1793 🇺🇸 United States and 3 moreBlack crappie A spotted freshwater sunfish native to North America, prized by anglers for its sport and table fare.Perch-like · Rivers and lakes · 1856 🇺🇸 United States and 2 moreGreen sunfish A small, aggressive freshwater fish native to North America, known for its blue-green colour and invasive potential in nPerch-like · 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 🇺🇸 United StatesWhite sucker A common North American freshwater cypriniform fish with fleshy lips used for bottom feeding.Other · Rivers and lakes · 1803 🇦🇴 Angola and 3 moreAtlantic mudskipper Semi-aquatic goby that walks on mudflats in West Africa.Other · Rivers and lakes · 1766 🇳🇬 NigeriaHingemouth Small African fish with a unique proboscis-like mouthOther · 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 🇸🇳 Senegal and 3 moreWest African lungfish Air-breathing freshwater fish from AfricaAncient · Rivers and lakes Southeast AsiaGiant snakehead A large freshwater predator from Southeast Asia known for air breathing and invasive potential.Other · Rivers and lakes 🇦🇴 Angola and 3 moreMarbled lungfish African lungfish with the largest known animal genome, found in East and Central Africa.Ancient · 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 🇷🇺 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 🇺🇸 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 🇨🇳 China and 3 moreAsian swamp eel A freshwater, air-breathing fish native to Asia and introduced elsewhere.Eel · 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 🇺🇸 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
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The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.

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