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
🇮🇳 India and 4 moreGiant mudskipper Large amphibious goby found in Indo-Pacific mangroves.Other · Rivers and lakes WorldSwordfish Large migratory fish with a long flat bill, sole member of its family.Other · Coasts and shelves 🇺🇸 United States and 1 moreStriped bass Anadromous marine fish native to the Atlantic coast of North America, known for sport fishing and culinary use.Other · Rivers and lakes 🇦🇺 Australia and 4 moreBarramundi A catadromous fish found across the Indo-West Pacific, valued for sport and aquaculture.Other · Rivers and lakes 🇵🇰 Pakistan and 4 moreParadise threadfin A yellow-finned ray-finned fish from South and Southeast Asia.Other · Rivers and lakes WorldGrey triggerfish A hardy Atlantic fish known for its locking dorsal spines and tough skin.Other · Coasts and shelves · 1789 WorldBlack marlin Largest marlin species in tropical Indo-Pacific watersOther · Coasts and shelves · 1832 WorldPufferfish Toxic fish that inflate into spiny spheres for defence.Other · Rivers and lakes 🇺🇸 United States and 3 moreAtlantic goliath grouper A massive saltwater fish found in the Atlantic Ocean, known for its size and protected status.Other · Coasts and shelves 🇨🇦 Canada and 3 moreSturgeon Ancient fish with bony plates and heterocercal tails, known for caviar.Ancient · Rivers and lakes WorldMackerel A group of pelagic fish known for their speed, stripes, and role in global fisheries.Tuna · Open ocean WorldMahi-mahi Fast-growing tropical surface fish with vivid coloursOther · Coasts and shelves · 1758 WorldGrouper Marine ray-finned fish in the family Epinephelidae, known for large size and commercial value.Shark · Coasts and shelves 🇳🇿 New ZealandBlue cod A temperate marine fish endemic to New Zealand known for its blue-green colour and territorial behaviour.Other · Coasts and shelves WorldCobia A large, solitary marine fish found in warm tropical and subtropical waters worldwide.Other · Coasts and shelves Capelin WorldCapelin Small forage fish of the smelt family found in northern oceans.Other · Open ocean 🇳🇿 New Zealand and 1 moreSprat Small forage fish of the genus Sprattus and related genera in the herring family.Herring · Coasts and shelves WorldBeluga sturgeon A massive anadromous fish from the Caspian and Black Sea basins, prized for its caviar.Other · Rivers and lakes 🇺🇸 United States and 1 moreRed drum A reddish game fish with a tail spot found in US coastal waters.Other · Coasts and shelves WorldJohn Dory Coastal marine fish with a dark spot and binocular visionOther · Coasts and shelves 🇮🇸 Iceland and 2 moreLumpfish A round, sucker-finned fish from the North Atlantic, prized for its roe and use in salmon farming.Other · Coasts and shelves · 1758 🇳🇿 New Zealand and 3 moreBlue grenadier A slender, silvery deep-sea fish from the Southern Hemisphere.Other · Coasts and shelves WorldSilver pomfret Buttery white fish of the Indo-Pacific coastsOther · Coasts and shelves 🇨🇳 ChinaLarge yellow croaker A golden marine fish farmed in East Asia.Other · Coasts and shelves · 1846 🇨🇳 China and 1 moreSmall yellow croaker Temperate western Pacific croaker with red lips and gold bellyOther · Coasts and shelves WorldDorab wolf-herring Slender coastal fish of the Indo-PacificOther · Coasts and shelves WorldBarracuda Large predatory saltwater fish with sharp teeth found in tropical oceans.Shark · Coasts and shelves · 1758 🇮🇳 India and 1 moreIndian sillago A small coastal whiting found in India and Oman.Other · Coasts and shelves · 1985
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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.