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

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
WorldStriped mullet A widespread coastal food fish found in tropical and temperate seas.Other · Rivers and lakes WorldMangrove red snapper Large Indo-Pacific snapper found in mangroves and reefsPerch-like · Rivers and lakes · 1775 WorldIndo-Pacific tarpon A migratory fish found in Indo-Pacific fresh and salt waters.Other · Rivers and lakes WorldJarbua terapon A striped Indo-Pacific fish found in seas and rivers.Other · Rivers and lakes · 1775 🇦🇫 Afghanistan and 4 moreSpotted snakehead Small carnivorous fish from South AsiaOther · Rivers and lakes 🇮🇷 Iran and 4 moreDwarf snakehead Small freshwater fish native to southern AsiaOther · Rivers and lakes 🇦🇫 Afghanistan and 4 moreGiant river-catfish Large bagrid catfish from South Asian riversCatfish · Rivers and lakes WorldFourfinger threadfin A large marine threadfin found in the Indo-Pacific.Other · Coasts and shelves 🇮🇳 India and 4 moreLong-whiskered catfish Large Asian catfish prized for food and sport.Catfish · Rivers and lakes 🇮🇳 India and 1 moreGoonch catfish A massive river catfish native to South Asia.Catfish · Rivers and lakes 🇮🇳 India and 1 morePengba A ray-finned fish native to Manipur and Myanmar.Carp · Rivers and lakes Schizothorax plagiostomus 🇨🇳 China and 4 moreSchizothorax plagiostomus A high-altitude cyprinid from the Himalayan rivers.Carp · Rivers and lakes 🇦🇫 Afghanistan and 4 moreRita Large bagrid catfish from South Asian riversCatfish · Rivers and lakes 🇮🇳 India and 4 moreZig-zag eel A large freshwater spiny eel native to South and Southeast Asia, known for its zigzag pattern and predatory habits.Eel · Rivers and lakes · 1777 🇮🇳 IndiaGangetic leaffish A small Asian fish found in slow rivers and ponds across South Asia.Other · Rivers and lakes 🇮🇳 India and 2 moreFreshwater garfish A slender, toothed needlefish from Asian fresh waters.Other · Rivers and lakes WorldTank goby Large subtropical goby found in fresh and salt waterOther · Rivers and lakes 🇮🇳 India and 3 moreTrout barb A slender carp living in fresh waters near the Bay of BengalCarp · Rivers and lakes 🇵🇰 Pakistan and 4 moreMola carplet A small freshwater fish from the Indian subcontinent valued as food.Carp · Rivers and lakes Southeast AsiaBasa A freshwater catfish from Southeast Asia sold globally as a cheap white fish.Catfish · Rivers and lakes · 1880 Lake Malawi sardine 🇲🇼 Malawi and 2 moreLake Malawi sardine Small freshwater fish endemic to Lake MalawiOther · Rivers and lakes 🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 4 moreCrucian carp A European cyprinid known for surviving winter ice by converting lactate to ethanol.Carp · Rivers and lakes 🇺🇸 United StatesCoastal cutthroat trout A Pacific trout with red throat marksSalmonid · Rivers and lakes 🇿🇲 Zambia and 4 moreKapenta Small freshwater sardines from Lake Tanganyika, vital for food and economy in southern Africa.Herring · Rivers and lakes 🇹🇭 Thailand and 4 moreIridescent shark Large Southeast Asian catfish farmed for food and kept in aquariums.Catfish · Rivers and lakes 🇨🇳 China and 3 moreGrass carp Large herbivorous freshwater fish used for weed control and food.Carp · Rivers and lakes North AmericaRainbow trout A cold-water trout native to the Pacific basin with a distinctive red stripe.Salmonid · Rivers and lakes · 1792 🇳🇿 New Zealand and 1 moreSprat Small forage fish of the genus Sprattus and related genera in the herring family.Herring · Coasts and shelves WorldZander A large freshwater predator fish native to Eurasia, valued for food and sport.Perch-like · Rivers and lakes · 1758 🇳🇴 Norway and 4 moreAtlantic salmon A large anadromous fish found in the northern Atlantic Ocean and its rivers.Salmonid · Rivers and lakes · 1758 🇺🇸 United States and 3 moreChinook salmon The largest Pacific salmon species, prized for size and food value.Salmonid · Rivers and lakes 🇺🇸 United States and 2 moreSteelhead Anadromous form of the rainbow trout that migrates between ocean and freshwater.Salmonid · Between sea and river 🇧🇩 Bangladesh and 4 moreIlish Anadromous herring species prized as a delicacy in South Asia and the Middle East.Herring · Rivers and lakes WorldBeluga sturgeon A massive anadromous fish from the Caspian and Black Sea basins, prized for its caviar.Other · Rivers and lakes WorldArctic char Cold-water salmonid native to Arctic and alpine waters.Salmonid · Rivers and lakes · 1758 🇺🇸 United States and 3 moreCoho salmon Anadromous Pacific salmon known for silver ocean phase and red spawning colours.Salmonid · Rivers and lakes 🇨🇳 China and 4 moreBighead carp A large Asian freshwater fish farmed globally and invasive in North America.Carp · Rivers and lakes 🇺🇸 United States and 1 moreWhite sturgeon Large North American sturgeon found in Pacific rivers and estuaries.Ancient · Rivers and lakes 🇨🇳 China and 1 moreSilver carp A filter-feeding freshwater fish native to Asia, now invasive in North America.Carp · Rivers and lakes · 1844 🇹🇭 Thailand and 3 moreSnakeskin gourami A large Southeast Asian freshwater fish known for its striped pattern and air-breathing ability.Other · Rivers and lakes 🇷🇺 Russia and 4 moreRussian sturgeon Large anadromous sturgeon of the Black and Caspian Seas.Ancient · Rivers and lakes 🇮🇳 India and 4 moreMrigal carp A farmed freshwater carp native to South Asia.Carp · Rivers and lakes 🇮🇩 Indonesia and 4 moreGiant gourami A large freshwater fish from Southeast Asia valued for food and kept in aquaria.Other · Rivers and lakes 🇮🇳 India and 1 moreGanges shark Critically endangered river shark of South AsiaShark · Rivers and lakes · 1839 🇮🇳 India and 4 moreBoal Large freshwater catfish native to South and Southeast Asia.Catfish · Rivers and lakes 🇮🇳 India and 4 moreCatla Large freshwater carp farmed across South Asia for food.Carp · Rivers and lakes 🇮🇳 India and 1 moreGreen chromide A brackish water cichlid native to India and Sri Lanka.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes · 1790 🇮🇳 India and 2 moreGiant devil catfish Large river catfish of South AsiaCatfish · Rivers and lakes · 1822
PreviousMore fish

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.