News
RiversEl 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 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-NicolaRiversEl 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 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-Nicola
EveryFish

Food fish

Caught and eaten around the world. 688 fish on EveryFish so far.

Fish is one of the main foods of humanity. The Food and Agriculture Organization reckons that aquatic foods provide about 15 per cent of the animal protein people eat worldwide, and much more in coastal and island countries and in places such as Bangladesh, Indonesia and West Africa. Thousands of fish species are eaten, but a few dozen, such as anchovies, pollock, tunas, herrings, carps and tilapia, make up most of the catch.

Fish in Indian kitchens

Most Indians eat fish at least sometimes, and in Bengal, Odisha, Assam, the North-East, Kerala, Goa and the Konkan, fish is at the centre of everyday meals. Bengalis prize rohu and hilsa cooked in mustard. Kerala cooks sardine, mackerel and pearlspot with coconut and kokum. Goans eat fish curry and rice daily, and Mumbai's Kolis fry bombil and pomfret. Dried and fermented fish are basic foods in the North-East and along the coasts.

From catch to plate

Fish spoils quickly, so ice, cold chains, canning, freezing, drying, salting and smoking shape how it reaches people. A large share of the world's catch of small fish such as anchovies is turned into fish meal and oil for farmed fish and animals rather than eaten directly. Large predatory fish such as some tunas and swordfish can build up mercury, so health agencies give advice on how often to eat them. EveryFish describes these uses as practice and tradition, not health advice.

Famous food fish fish

Atlantic codThe fish of fish and chips and bacalhauIlishThe hilsa of Bengali cookingRohuIndia's most eaten carpSkipjack tunaMost of the world's canned tunaAlaska pollockFish fingers, fillets and surimiPeruvian anchovetaThe largest single-species fisheryIndian mackerelAn everyday fish of India's coastsAtlantic herringPickled, smoked and salted in northern Europe

Further reading

GroupSharkRayCarpCatfishSalmonidHerringCodTunaPerch-likeCichlidReef fishEelFlatfishLivebearerAncientOther
WaterRivers and lakesEstuaries and mangrovesCoasts and shelvesCoral reefsOpen oceanDeep seaPolar and cold seasCaves and springsBetween sea and river
OrderBest knownA to ZOldest firstNewest firstBy size
🇦🇺 AustraliaKing George whiting A large coastal fish endemic to southern Australia, known for its spotted pattern and commercial value.Other · Coasts and shelves · 1829 🇿🇦 South Africa and 4 moreJapanese meagre A large saltwater fish found across the Indo-Pacific region.Other · Coasts and shelves 🇦🇺 AustraliaDusky flathead A large predatory fish found in Australian estuaries.Other · Estuaries and mangroves 🇳🇿 New Zealand and 3 moreHāpuku Large deep-water wreckfish prized for food and aquaculture.Other · Coasts and shelves 🇳🇿 New ZealandNew Zealand grayling Extinct amphidromous fish endemic to New Zealand rivers and seas.Other · Rivers and lakes 🇦🇺 AustraliaAustralian herring A silver coastal fish from southern Australia.Other · Coasts and shelves · 1831 🇦🇺 AustraliaWestern blue groper Large, long-lived wrasse from southern Australian reefs.Other · Coasts and shelves · 1843 🇯🇵 JapanJapanese puffer A small-genome pufferfish used in genomics and cuisine.Other · Coasts and shelves WorldCommon seahorse A small, spotted seahorse found in Indo-Pacific coastal waters.Other · Estuaries and mangroves WorldMackerel icefish Antarctic fish with mild flesh and black dorsal finsOther · Coasts and shelves · 1905 🇺🇸 United StatesCalifornia grunion Small silvery fish that spawns on sandy beaches during high tides.Other · Coasts and shelves 🇹🇷 Turkey and 4 moreAnchovy Small, oily forage fish found in oceans and some rivers worldwide.Herring · Coasts and shelves WorldPomfret A family of scombriform fish found in oceans worldwide, valued as food.Other · Open ocean WorldStriped marlin Fast pelagic predator with blue stripesOther · Open ocean 🇺🇸 United States and 1 moreEulachon A small anadromous smelt known for its high fat content and cultural importance in Pacific North America.Other · Rivers and lakes 🇩🇪 Germany and 4 moreEuropean smelt Small coastal fish with a cucumber scentOther · Rivers and lakes WorldPacific sand lance Small forage fish of the North Pacific that burrows in sandOther · Coasts and shelves 🇺🇸 United StatesSpotted seatrout Estuarine drum fish of the US southeast coastOther · Estuaries and mangroves North AmericaAtlantic croaker Noisy marine fish of the western Atlantic coastOther · Coasts and shelves WorldBluefish Aggressive marine pelagic fish found in temperate and subtropical waters worldwide.Other · Coasts and shelves 🇺🇸 United StatesFlorida pompano A fast-growing marine fish prized for food and sport fishing.Other · Coasts and shelves WorldEscolar Deep-ocean fish with high oil content often mislabelled as tuna.Other · Coasts and shelves EuropeRed gurnard A bright red bottom-dwelling fish of the eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean.Other · Coasts and shelves · 1758 🇦🇺 Australia and 1 moreYellowtail amberjack Large pelagic fish of the Southern Hemisphere oceansOther · Coasts and shelves · 1833 WorldGreater amberjack Large predatory jack found in warm seas worldwide.Other · Coasts and shelves · 1810 🇯🇵 Japan and 2 moreJapanese amberjack A prized jack fish native to the northwest Pacific Ocean.Other · Coasts and shelves 🇺🇸 United States and 2 moreLingcod A large predatory fish of the North American Pacific coast.Other · Coasts and shelves 🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 2 moreEuropean hake A predatory demersal fish of the eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean.Other · Coasts and shelves 🇺🇸 United States and 1 moreNorth Pacific hake A silver-gray marine fish found in the northeast Pacific Ocean, used for surimi production.Other · Coasts and shelves WorldBlackspot threadfin Small marine fish with six chest filaments and a dark side spotOther · Coasts and shelves · 1801 WorldRed mullet Two species of goatfish found in the Mediterranean and Atlantic.Other · Coasts and shelves EuropeEuropean angler A bottom-dwelling Atlantic fish with a lure-tipped spine.Other · Coasts and shelves · 1758 WorldStriped red mullet A striped goatfish from the Mediterranean and Atlantic.Other · Coasts and shelves 🇲🇽 MexicoTotoaba The largest drum fish, native to the Gulf of California and threatened by illegal trade.Other · Coasts and shelves WorldHoundfish A large pelagic needlefish found in tropical oceans worldwide.Other · Coasts and shelves · 1821 WorldHarry hotlips A reef fish with swollen lips and leaf-like juveniles.Other · Coasts and shelves · 1802 WorldJavelin grunter A marine grunt found in the Indo-Pacific coastal waters.Other · Coasts and shelves · 1830 WorldNorthern whiting A widespread marine fish found in the Indo-Pacific, known for its silvery body and ability to bury itself in sand.Other · Coasts and shelves · 1775 Common ponyfish WorldCommon ponyfish A small, silvery marine fish found in Indo-Pacific coastal waters.Other · Coasts and shelves WorldShrimp scad Tropical jack with a yellow tail found on reefs.Other · Coasts and shelves · 1775 WorldYellowtail scad Small coastal jack of the Indo-Pacific with distinctive yellow fins.Other · Coasts and shelves · 1833 WorldBartail flathead A widespread marine flathead found across the Indo-Pacific.Other · Coasts and shelves · 1758 WorldOrange-spotted grouper A large Indo-Pacific marine fish prized for its flesh and known for changing sex.Other · Coasts and shelves · 1822 WorldStriped mullet A widespread coastal food fish found in tropical and temperate seas.Other · Rivers and lakes WorldTigertooth croaker A silvery marine croaker found across the Indo-Pacific.Other · Coasts and shelves · 1801 Blackspotted croaker 🇦🇺 Australia and 4 moreBlackspotted croaker Large Indo-Pacific marine fish prized for its high market value.Other · Coasts and shelves · 1802 WorldJapanese threadfin bream A pinkish marine fish used in crab sticks and fisheries across the Indo-Pacific.Other · Coasts and shelves · 1791 🇺🇸 United States and 4 moreSmelt Small fish of the northern hemisphere known for spring runs and culinary traditions.Other · Rivers and lakes
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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.