2. Fishes of Pennsylvania

3. Most common and widely distributed sucker in the state
Natural range from northern Canada to Florida
Large enough to be sought by anglers who usually fish for them during their spring spawning run
reach a maximum length of 24” and five ponds
dull, silvery sheen on the sides and a whitish belly. Lower lip is wider than it is high and split
- during spawning the male’s back becomes olive with a bright lavender sheen and there is a band of pink or red along each side
- live in many habitats and are tolerant of pollution, low oxygen and silted water
- Spawn from early May to early June

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5. Found widely along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts
Freshwater eels are the only catadromous fishes in North America. Catadromous means that they are born in salt water and live their adult lives in fresh water
Found widely along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts
Found mostly in PA in the Delaware River because there are no dams to prevent their migration
Until the early 1900’s eel provided an intense commercial fishery in Susquehanna and Delaware River systems.
Seems scaleless but actually has smooth, tiny scales

7. Could be mistaken for the redfin but they have very distinct ranges
Distributed throughout the Mississippi watershed/ The redfin is an East Coast fish
Found in northwestern PA in Lake Erie and Allegheny River watersheds
Subspecies name “vermiculatus” means “wormlike,” describing the wavy markings on its side
rarely grow over 12 inches long
Adult grass pickerel could be mistaken for an immature pike or muskellunge except for, except for the scaling that covers its cheeks and gill covers
The streaks may look like bars or just shadowy, wavy lines
Live in marshy areas of lakes and ponds and slow-flowing sections of streams

9. Pennsylvania’s biggest minnow
Originally distributed throughout Europe and Asia
look for the soft, fleshy barbels around the mouth and a large size to not confuse with feral gold fish
Lengthy dorsal fin/ Body is arched toward the dorsal fin
Large scales that are dark-edged with a black spot at the base
Back is olive-brown, sides becoming silvery-bronze or olive gold, stomach is yellow or yellow-white
can tolerate habitats that most other fish can’t
Prefer shallow areas with underwater weed growth
carp cause muddy waters because of their rooting around to feed
can live to be about 20 years old

11. Important component for the food web in PA’s stream ecosystem
lives in all of PA’s watersheds
averages 3 to 4 inches in length but can get as long as 8 inches
back olive-green w/ noticeable purple or blue-grey stripe, silvery on sides, white belly
head of breeding males becomes swollen and pinkish purple.
prefers streams of small to moderate size, shaded with cool and clear water
does not tolerate warmer or more silted conditions like other shiners
spawn May to July
Males remain over nests to defend eggs

13. Distribution is circumpolar – lives in northern hemisphere in North America, Europe and Asia
Anglo-Saxons named it after the weapon
In PA, native to only the Ohio and Allegheny watersheds and Lake Erie
Aggressive and eager to bite/ good game fish
Easily reach 20 pounds and 40 inches. State Record 33 pounds
Back and sides are ark yellow-green or grey-green, whitish undersides
Over the sides are lateral rows of whitish or yellowish oblong spots
Fins have black spots and are orange or red

15. One of the most common and frequently caught of the sunfish
eight inches in an average size
body is an overall light-olive color to golden-brown, with irregular blue or blue-green lines and a sprinkling of orange or red-orange spots
The cheeks and gill covers are marked with wavy light-blue lines
the belly is reddish-orange to yellow
The best way to identify a pumkinseed is to observe its gill flap, which is at the rear edge of the gill cover. The black gill flap is smaller and more rigid than the bluegill’s. It also has a bright orange-red tip
found in quiet, weedy shallows of streams, lakes and ponds. They usually live in cooler water than other sunfish. They can tolerate poor conditions
Spawn in late May to early June. Feed heavily on snails.

17. primitive, ancient bony fish
One of two gar species in PA and is on the endangered list
In PA, it mostly lives around the Preque Isle Bay
Gars have a swim bladder which allows them to gulp oxygen above the water when living in really low oxygen water
The single dorsal fin and anal fin are located far back on the body
olive green on the back and and silvery white on the belly
The fins have dark spots and the fish can grow to be 4 feet long

19. Along with growing larger, the largemouth bass is more rotund (fat) and less flattened laterally (side to side) than other members of the sunfish family.
The head and back are bright green to olive-green.
The upper jaw extends beyond the back edge of its eye.
The two sections of the dorsal fin are nearly separate.

21. One of three bullheads
Found in all of PA’s watersheds
May grow 18 to 19”, but most are much smaller
Back is yellow-olive to a slate-grey, shading to a lighter yellow-olive on the sides
Long anal fin with rays
The rear edge of the tail fin is nearly straight or rounded
Tolerant of low oxygen and highly silted waters. Can withstand pollution better than many other fishes
Like mucky bottoms and dense aquatic vegetation

23. Rainbow trout are only native on the west coast
Rainbows are silvery-grey to dark-green on the back and sides
They have pinkish or reddish lateral stripe, sometimes with lavender or orange overtones, from the gill covering to the tail

25. The brown trout is not native; originally from Eurasia
Considered more difficult to catch than brook trout
Brownish in overall tone. The back and upper sides are dark-brown to grey-brown, with yellow-brown to silvery lower sides
Large, dark spots are outlined with pale halos on the sides, the back and dorsal fin, with reddish-orange or yellow spots scattered on the sides
The belly is white-yellow

27. PA’s official state fish.
Technically a char
Only stream trout native to North America
Also called speckled trout, squaretails, or just brookies
General body color is dark-green
Back is dark-olive green or grey-green, mottled with dark squiggly or worm-like markings from head to tail
The sides and belly shade lighter, sometimes with green, grey or even lavender tones and additional wormy markings
The sides have bright scattered red dots, surrounded by bright blue halos.
The tail fin is less forked than most tout and salmon, even squarish

29. A species of the east coast ranging from Canada to Virginia
Pennsylvania’s largest native minnow
May reach 18 inches
Back is olive-brown to black, shading to white, shading to silvery on the sides
Fall fish less than four inches are silvery with a prominent black line running down each side
The fall fish has a small barbel between the lip and snout
Prefer clear, clean, gravelly pools

31. Next to the flathead, the channel is the biggest catfish in PA
State record – 35 pounds
They are not native to the Atlantic coast or PA
Deeply forked tail
24 to 30 rays on the anal fin’
Small, fleshy adipose fin
Typical catfish spines on the dorsal and pectoral fin
Most catfish have small, irregular spots on their sides and backs.
Long, black barbels
Clear, warm lakes and moderately large to large rivers

33. Flathead catfish grow longer and heavier than other PA catfish
PA record is 40 pounds but can grow to over 100
Tail only slightly indented.
Lower jaw projects past upper jaw.
Body looks long and slender
The upper portion of the flathead catfish’s body is yellowish brown to dark, almost purplish brown, with black or brown mottling on lighter brown sides
The belly is greyish or yellowish white
Chin barbels are white to yellow
Anal fin is short and rounded and has less than sixteen rays
Found in large rivers, streams and lakes, usually over hard bottoms
Prefers deep, sluggish pools, with logs and other submerged debris

35. Varacious predator; fast growing; state record 54 pounds
Dorsal and anal fins are so far back that it is almost missile shaped\
The musky has no scales on the lower half of its cheek and lower half of its gill cover, which helps to distinguish it from the northern pike
Also, the musky has six to nine pores, tiny sensory openings, beneath each side of its jaw, the northern pike has five or fewer pores.
Varies in color and intensity of markings.
The base color on the back and sides is light greenish grey or yellow-green to olive-brown, the sides shading lighter
Muskies are cool water fish, found in clear natural lakes, reservoirs and streams

37. Atalantic coast is native habitat
They are anadromous fish, living in salt water but breeding in fresh water
Can also live whole life as a freshwater fish, landlocked
South of PA and NJ, stripers are called rock fish
Smoothly arched profile
After five to ten pounds, they begin to look heavier and pot-bellied
The back is olive-grey to steely blue grey, sometimes almost black
The sides are silvery to pale silvery-green, shading to white on the belly
There are seven or eight distinct, black stripes that run laterally on the side of the belly
Two dorsal fins, the front spiny-rayed, the back mostly soft-rayed.
Eleven soft rays on the anal fin

39. Long looking body but now as slim in appearance as other perch family species
The upper part of the head, back and sides is olive-green to golden-brown, shading to lighter yellow-green or yellow on the sides
Some back and side scales are dark and form a pattern of six to nine vertical stripes that narrow as the approach the belly
Habitat
live in a variety of aquatic habitats, including warm or cool lakes, ponds and sluggish streams
A prime yellow perch lake is cool and clear with sandy or gravelly soil and rooted underwater vegetation
Considered shallow water dwellers and are not usually caught more than thirty feet deep

41. In PA, originally from the Lake Eerie and Allegheny watersheds
One of the walleye’s nicknames is “Susquehanna Salmon”
Biggest, toothiest member of the perch family
Name refers to the fish’s large, milky eye that looks luminous when a light shines on it
Identification
Long, roundish body, a forked tail and sharp, canine teeth
The large eye is glassy and reflects light at night
The dorsal fin is separated into two parts, the front portion with spines, the rear portion with one or two short spines and the rest soft rays
Vary in color ranging from bluish grey to olive-brown to golden yellow, with dark on light moddling
Sometimes sides have a vague barred pattern
One way to tell a walleye from a sauger is to look for the walleyes dark spot at the rear edge of the front (spiny) section of its dorsal fin. Also, on the walleye, the lower portion of the tail fin is whitish and so is the bottom margin of its anal fin
Habitat
Live in large lakes, streams and rivers
They are rarely found in lakes smaller than 50 to 100 acres
Abundant in lakes that are cool and have gravel or sand bottom

43. The bluegill is what many people think of as a “sunfish.”
The common name refers to the bluish color that curves from the lower jaw around the bottom of the gill cover.
It is believed not to have been present originally in Atlantic Ocean watersheds.
The bluegill has several characteristic markings, which are helpful because its color varies so much. Generally, it has an olive to brownish back, with sides that shade to brownish, orange or even pink.
The sides have eight to ten sets of double, bluish vertical bars that may look chainlike
The belly is white to yellow or coppery orange.
The sides of the head are greenish or blue-green
The giveaway marking that distinguishes this sunfish from others is that the flap at the end of its gill cover is black with no red spot.
Bluegills also have a dark spot on the lower part of the back section of the dorsal fin.

45. Originally only in Appalachian Mountains and west, now everywhere.
Found most often in still waterways and slow-moving streams.
The minnow is probably the most common baitfish sold in PA
Grows to a max of 3 1/2 inches
The fathead minnow is yellow-olive or olive-colored on the back with hints of purple and cooper in older fish.
The fins appear tinted with silver or olive yellow.
The sides are yellow and fade to yellowish white or silver.
Very hardy, tolerating clear and cloudy water, extremes of pH and low oxygen levels
Don’t often live past their third year

47. Has a wide range over the US and Canada.
It is common in clear, clean upland and mountainous streams.
Mottled sculpins often live in company with brook and brown trout, but they can also live in waters too warm for trout.
Found in all our watersheds
Sculpins are small, camouflaged fish that reach a total of four or five inches.
The dark and light mottled color helps them hide on the river bottom.
The broad head, fleshy mouth and upward peering eyes look large for the rest of the body.
The large, fanlike pectoral fins and flattened body allow it to stay pressed against the river’s bottom, even in swift water.
They have two dorsal fins, a spiny and soft.
Spawn in early spring.