Fish Encyclopedia
Search and identify 1,000+ fish species — freshwater, saltwater, reef, and pelagic — with habitat, size, diet, behavior, and how to tell them apart.
Sparkling Gourami
A tiny, jewel-like Southeast Asian gourami covered in iridescent blue-green spangling and reddish stripes, small enough to be one of the smallest gouramis kept in aquariums.
freshwater
Weedy Seadragon
A slender, reddish-purple relative of the seahorse decorated with small leaf-like fin projections and yellow stripes, found along the temperate reefs of southern Australia.
reef
Chestnut Lamprey
The chestnut lamprey is a freshwater parasitic lamprey of central North America named for its reddish-brown coloration, native to Mississippi and Great Lakes basin rivers and lakes.
freshwater
California Scorpionfish
A mottled reddish-brown scorpionfish of the California coast, camouflaged against rocky and sandy bottoms and equipped with venomous spines along its dorsal fin.
saltwater
Chocolate Gourami
A small, sensitive Southeast Asian blackwater specialist with a rich chocolate-brown body crossed by pale cream bands, notable as one of the few gouramis that broods its eggs in the mouth.
freshwater
Pikehead
An elongated, pike-shaped ambush predator from Southeast Asian blackwater swamps, unique among the gourami family as an obligate carnivore that snaps up prey with lightning speed.
freshwater
Brown Trout
A golden-brown salmonid native to Europe and western Asia, marked by dark and reddish spots along its body, now widely introduced across the globe. It favors cool, clear rivers, streams, and lakes.
freshwater
Bocaccio
A large, streamlined rockfish with a prominent lower jaw and reddish-brown to olive coloring, once heavily depleted along the Pacific coast and now the focus of long-term rebuilding efforts.
saltwater
Smallmouth Bass
A bronze-green freshwater bass native to eastern North America, prized as a popular sport fish and recognized by its vertical dark bars and reddish eyes. It favors clear, rocky rivers, streams, and lakes.
freshwater
Allis Shad
A large anadromous herring relative native to Europe's Atlantic coast, the Allis Shad spends most of its life at sea but migrates into large rivers each spring to spawn, forming runs that have been much reduced.
brackish
Peacock Blenny
A shallow-water Mediterranean blenny in which breeding males grow a tall fleshy head crest and a bold eyespot on the dorsal fin.
saltwater
Grayling
A slender freshwater salmonid relative famed for its tall, sail-like dorsal fin, native to cold, clear rivers of Europe.
freshwater
Yucatan Molly
A large sailfin livebearer native to the coastal waters of the Yucatan Peninsula, known for the male's dramatically tall, sail-like dorsal fin used in courtship.
brackish
Almaco Jack
A deep-bodied jack with a tall, strongly notched dorsal fin and elongated fin lobes, commonly found around tropical reefs and offshore structure.
reef
Roosterfish
An unmistakable eastern Pacific game fish named for the tall comb-like spines of its dorsal fin, which it raises above the water while hunting.
saltwater
Firefish Goby
A slender white-and-orange reef fish with a tall, flag-like first dorsal fin, often seen hovering near its burrow on sandy slopes.
reef
Gafftopsail Catfish
A silvery Atlantic sea catfish named for the tall, sail-like extension of its first dorsal fin ray and long trailing pectoral fin filaments.
saltwater
Cubbyu
A small, deep-bodied drum with a tall dorsal fin and faint dark stripes, often seen hovering near reef ledges in the western Atlantic.
reef
Mono Argentus
A flat, disc-shaped, mirror-silver fish with tall yellow-tinged fins, commonly seen schooling in brackish estuaries and harbors across the Indo-Pacific.
brackishGuppy
A small livebearing fish native to northeastern South America, famous for the males' vividly colored, ornately shaped tails and its worldwide popularity in the aquarium hobby.
freshwater
Dwarf Seahorse
One of the smallest seahorse species in the world, standing barely a few centimeters tall and clinging to seagrass blades in shallow waters of the southeastern United States and Bahamas.
saltwater
Firefish
The Firefish is a slender, white-to-orange goby-like fish with a tall sail-like dorsal fin, known for hovering above its burrow and darting inside when startled.
reef
Sailfin Catfish
A large South American armored catfish with a tall sail-like dorsal fin, popular in aquariums and now a widespread invasive species in warm freshwater habitats worldwide.
freshwaterSailfin Flyingfish
A small, two-winged flyingfish with a tall, sail-like dorsal fin and blunt snout, found gliding over warm coastal and offshore surface waters worldwide.
pelagic