Ultimate Guide to Popular Freshwater Fish: From Largemouth Bass to Gars
1. Largemouth bass
The largemouth bass is an olive-green to greenish gray fish, marked by a series of dark, sometimes black, blotches forming a jagged horizontal stripe along each flank. The upper jaw (maxilla) of a largemouth bass extends beyond the rear margin of the orbit.
2. Smallmouth bass
The smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu) is a freshwater species in the sunfish family. It’s a popular game fish throughout the temperate zones of our continent, and has been spread by stocking to many cool-water tributaries, lakes and reservoirs.
3. Striped bass
The striped bass (Morone saxatilis), also called Atlantic striped bass, striper, linesider, rock or rockfish, is an anadromous Perciforme fish of the family Moronidae found primarily along the Atlantic coast of North America.
4. Catfish
Catfish (or catfishes; order Siluriformes or Nematognathi) are a diverse group of ray-finned fish. Named for their prominent barbels, which resemble a cat's whiskers. Most catfish are bottom feeders. In general, they are negatively buoyant, which means that they will usually sink rather than float due to a reduced gas bladder and a heavy, bony head.
5. Carp
Carp are various species of oily freshwater fish from the family Cyprinidae, a very large group of fish native to Europe and Asia.
6. Bluegill
The bluegill (Lepomis macrochirus) is a species of freshwater fish sometimes referred to as bream, brim, sunny, or copper nose. It is a member of the sunfish family Centrarchidae of the order Perciformes. It is native to North America and lives in streams, rivers, lakes, and ponds. It is commonly found east of the Rockies. It usually hides around, and inside, old tree stumps and other underwater structures.
7. Crappie
Crappies are a genus, Pomoxis, of North American fresh water fish in the sunfish family Centrarchidae. Both species in this genus are popular pan fish. The Pomoxis species are highly regarded pan fish and are often considered to be among the best-tasting freshwater fish. Because of their diverse diets, crappie may be caught in many ways, including casting light jigs, trolling with minnows or artificial lures, using small spinnerbaits, or using bobbers. Crappies are also popular with ice-anglers, as they are active in winter.
8. Walleye
The walleye, also called the yellow pike, is a freshwater perciform fish native to most of Canada and to the Northern United States. It is a North American close relative of the European zander, also known as the pikeperch.
9. Northern pike & muskie
The muskellunge (Esox masquinongy), typically called a muskie, and the northern pike (Esox lucius) are both members of the Esocidae family of fish. Along with the chain pickerel and the grass pickerel, these two species comprise the four members of the Esocidae family found in the United States.
10. Trout
Trout is the common name for a number of species of freshwater fish belonging to the genera Oncorhynchus, Salmo and Salvelinus, all of the subfamily Salmoninae of the family Salmonidae.
11. Sucker
Sucker, (family Catostomidae), any of the freshwater fishes constituting the family Catostomidae, similar to and closely related to the carp and minnows (Cyprinidae).
12. Gar
Gars (or garpike) are members of the Lepisosteiformes (or Semionotiformes), an ancient holosteian order of ray-finned fish; fossils from this order are known from the Late Jurassic onwards. They typically grow to 2 m (6.5 ft) and weigh over 45 kg (100 lb).
