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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

Rivers and lakes

Fresh water: rivers, streams, lakes and ponds. 454 fish on EveryFish so far.

Rivers, lakes, streams and ponds hold less than one per cent of the Earth's water, yet about half of all known fish species live in them. Fresh water is broken into separate basins, and fish that cannot cross between them evolve apart, which is why each river system and lake has its own species. The Amazon, Congo, Mekong and Ganges basins and the great lakes of Africa are the richest.

Life in fresh water

A freshwater fish is saltier inside than the water around it, so it must pump salt in through its gills and pass a lot of dilute urine. Freshwater habitats range from torrential Himalayan streams, where loaches cling to rocks, to warm, still swamps where air-breathing snakeheads, catfish and gouramis thrive. Many river fish time their spawning to floods: the Indian major carps spawn in the monsoon floodwaters, and Mekong fish move into flooded forests.

The most threatened fish

Freshwater fish are declining faster than sea fish. A 2021 report by conservation groups found that about a third of freshwater fish species are threatened with extinction and that 80 had already been declared extinct. Dams block migrations, water is drawn off for farms and cities, pollution and sand mining degrade rivers, and introduced species such as tilapia and African catfish compete with native fish. In India, the rivers of the Western Ghats and the North-East hold many endemic fish at risk.

Famous rivers and lakes fish

RohuA river carp of the Indian subcontinentArapaimaAn air-breathing giant of the AmazonMekong giant catfishOne of the largest freshwater fishGolden mahseerThe golden mahseer of Himalayan riversNile perchA huge predator of African lakesRed-bellied piranhaA schooling fish of South American riversZebrafishA small fish of South Asian streams

Further reading

GroupSharkRayCarpCatfishSalmonidHerringCodTunaPerch-likeCichlidReef fishEelFlatfishLivebearerAncientOther
UseFood fishFarmedAquarium fishSport fishingCulture and faithVenomous or dangerousInvasiveScience and research
OrderBest knownA to ZOldest firstNewest firstBy size
🇧🇷 BrazilDiscus Round, colourful cichlids from the Amazon basin.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes · 1840 🇧🇷 Brazil and 3 moreOscar Large South American cichlid popular in aquariumsCichlid · Rivers and lakes · 1831 🇲🇽 Mexico and 4 moreJack Dempsey Aggressive cichlid native to Central AmericaCichlid · Rivers and lakes 🇲🇽 Mexico and 2 moreFiremouth cichlid Central American cichlid with a bright red throatCichlid · Rivers and lakes 🇧🇷 Brazil and 3 moreSpeckled peacock bass A large South American cichlid prized for sport and food.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes WorldBlood parrot cichlid A bright orange hybrid cichlid bred for the aquarium trade.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes · 1986 🇻🇪 Venezuela and 1 moreRam cichlid Small colourful freshwater fish from South AmericaCichlid · Rivers and lakes · 1948 WorldHeros efasciatus A fruit-eating cichlid from the Amazon basin.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes 🇳🇬 Nigeria and 1 moreKribensis Small colourful cichlid from West AfricaCichlid · Rivers and lakes · 1901 Sub-Saharan AfricaElectric yellow cichlid Bright yellow cichlid from Lake Malawi popular in home aquariums.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes Livingston's cichlid Sub-Saharan AfricaLivingston's cichlid A predatory cichlid from Lake Malawi that feigns death to hunt.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes WorldHypostomus plecostomus A tropical armored catfish from South America, kept in aquariums for algae control.Catfish · Rivers and lakes · 1758 Sub-Saharan AfricaFrontosa cichlid Large deep-water cichlid from Lake Tanganyika with a prominent forehead hump.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes 🇧🇴 Bolivia and 1 moreBolivian ram A small, peaceful cichlid from the Amazon basin.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes 🇧🇷 Brazil and 4 moreAmazon sailfin catfish A large freshwater armored catfish from South America, often kept in aquariums and known as an invasive pest elsewhere.Catfish · Rivers and lakes 🇻🇪 Venezuela and 1 moreOtocinclus Small South American armored catfishes known for algae eating and air breathing.Catfish · Rivers and lakes 🇧🇷 BrazilZebra pleco Striped catfish from the Rio XinguCatfish · Rivers and lakes · 1991 WorldBarb A common name for various ray-finned cyprinid fish, especially in the genera Barbus and Puntius.Carp · Rivers and lakes Asian redtail catfish 🇹🇭 Thailand and 1 moreAsian redtail catfish Large Asian bagrid catfish with a bright red tail.Catfish · Rivers and lakes Sub-Saharan AfricaCuckoo catfish A brood-parasitic catfish from Lake TanganyikaCatfish · Rivers and lakes Latin America and the CaribbeanBanjo catfish A South American family of scaleless, benthic catfish with a distinctive banjo-shaped body.Catfish · Rivers and lakes 🇧🇴 Bolivia and 4 moreRipsaw catfish Large thorny catfish native to South American rivers.Catfish · Rivers and lakes WorldWhiskered twig catfish Slender South American armored catfish genusCatfish · Rivers and lakes WorldPangasius A genus of shark catfishes from South and Southeast Asia, widely farmed for food.Catfish · Rivers and lakes · 1822 WorldLoach Small bottom-dwelling freshwater fish found across Eurasia and Africa.Other · Rivers and lakes · 1758 🇹🇭 Thailand and 2 moreGiant pangasius A large freshwater catfish from Southeast Asia, now critically endangered due to overfishing and habitat loss.Catfish · Rivers and lakes · 1931 🇺🇦 Ukraine and 4 moreWels catfish A large freshwater catfish native to Europe and Western Asia, known for its size and bottom-feeding habits.Catfish · Rivers and lakes · 1758 🇧🇷 BrazilPiraíba A massive Amazonian catfish known for its long barbels and role as an apex predator.Catfish · Rivers and lakes WorldUpside-down catfish A small African catfish known for swimming on its back to feed.Catfish · Rivers and lakes 🇧🇷 Brazil and 4 moreTiger shovelnose catfish Large striped South American river catfishCatfish · Rivers and lakes · 1862 🇳🇬 Nigeria and 1 moreElectric catfish African catfish that generates strong electric shocksCatfish · Rivers and lakes 🇹🇭 ThailandGlass catfish A small, transparent freshwater catfish from Thailand.Catfish · Rivers and lakes · 2013 WorldBronze corydoras Small armored catfish popular in home aquariumsCatfish · Rivers and lakes · 1858 🇧🇷 Brazil and 2 morePygmy corydoras A tiny armored catfish from South America kept in community aquariums.Catfish · Rivers and lakes · 1966 🇧🇷 Brazil and 1 moreAncistrus A genus of small, nocturnal freshwater catfish native to South America and Panama.Catfish · Rivers and lakes 🇵🇪 Peru and 1 morePanda corydoras Small armoured catfish with distinctive black eye patchesCatfish · Rivers and lakes · 1971 Southeast AsiaSiamese algae-eater A bottom-dwelling freshwater fish from Southeast Asia known for eating red algae in aquariums.Carp · Rivers and lakes Southeast AsiaRainbow shark A Southeast Asian freshwater cyprinid kept as a popular but aggressive aquarium fish.Carp · Rivers and lakes 🇹🇭 ThailandRed-tailed black shark A critically endangered Thai carp kept widely in aquariums for its black body and red tail.Carp · Rivers and lakes · 1931 Southeast AsiaClown barb A spotted freshwater fish from Borneo and Sumatra.Carp · Rivers and lakes Sub-Saharan AfricaVictoria tilapia A cichlid native to Lake Victoria with unique colour patterns.Cichlid · Rivers and lakes 🇹🇭 Thailand and 1 moreBala shark A large, silver cyprinid often kept in aquariums despite its size.Carp · Rivers and lakes 🇨🇳 ChinaWhite Cloud Mountain minnow A small, hardy freshwater fish native to China, popular in aquariums for its cold tolerance and peaceful nature.Carp · Rivers and lakes · 1930 🇮🇩 IndonesiaChili rasbora Tiny red and black fish from Borneo swamps kept in aquariums.Other · Rivers and lakes 🇲🇲 Myanmar and 1 moreCelestial pearl danio A tiny, brightly coloured freshwater fish from Myanmar and Thailand, popular in the aquarium trade.Carp · Rivers and lakes · 2006 🇲🇲 Myanmar and 2 morePearl danio Small tropical freshwater fish with an iridescent sheen.Other · Rivers and lakes 🇮🇩 IndonesiaKuhli loach A slender, nocturnal freshwater fish from Southeast Asia popular in aquariums.Other · Rivers and lakes · 1846 🇮🇩 IndonesiaClown loach Striped tropical freshwater fish from IndonesiaOther · Rivers and lakes · 1852
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