Locations

Fish species in Florida

392 species have two or more US observation records in Florida. Explore their habitats, families, and local records.

392 species have two or more US observation records in Florida. ITIS calls 283 of them native to the United States, 75 native to part of the country and introduced elsewhere, and 34 introduced.

Species: 392
Freshwater: 231
Saltwater: 220
Survey list: 97

1state

Florida in the United States.

Two counts, two questions. 392 is the number of species observed in Florida and filed with GBIF, which includes lakes, the coast, and museum records. 97 is the number the USGS stream survey caught, which samples flowing fresh water only. Neither is the other, so the site never adds them.

The statute

The official state fish of Florida

Florida largemouth bass (freshwater)

Micropterus floridanus · named 2007

leg.state.fl.us

Atlantic sailfish (saltwater)

Istiophorus albicans · named 2007

ITIS files no US record under Istiophorus albicans, so this site has no page for it.

leg.state.fl.us

A state fish is a statute, not a survey. It says which fish the legislature chose, not which fish is most common. The list above links each row to the state's own record.

Record fish

Florida state records

The heaviest fish of each species certified by Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, freshwater. Heaviest first. Every figure is the agency’s own.

Species	Weight	Length	Water	Date	Angler
Alligator Gar	123 lb		Choctawhatchee River	7/8/1995	Zachary Phillips
Blue Catfish	73.6 lb	48.5	Suwannee River	2/15/2026	Justin Hodge
Flathead Catfish	69.9 lb	48.5	Yellow River	8/26/2020	Lavon Nowling
Channel Catfish	44.5 lb		Lake Bluff	5/19/1985	Joe Purvis
Striped Bass	42.24 lb		Apalachicola River	12/14/1993	Alphonso Barnes
Longnose Gar	41 lb		Lake Panasoffkee	4/14/1985	Evan Merritt
Common Carp	35 lb
Bowfin	19 lb		Lake Kissimmee	10/5/1984	Jim Brown
White Catfish	18.88 lb		Withlacoochee River	9/21/1991	Jim Miller
Largemouth Bass	17.27 lb			7/6/1986	Billy O'Berry
Sunshine Bass	16.31 lb		Lake Seminole	5/9/1985	Thomas Elder
Blue/Nile Tilapia or Hybrid	10.09 lb	20.5	Rodman Reservoir	11/18/2024	James Hamilton
Florida Gar	9.44 lb		Lake Lawne	3/25/2001	Patric A. McDaniel
Butterfly Peacock Bass	9.11 lb	23 - 5/16		10/8/2021	Felipe Prieto
Brown Bullhead	7.02 lb		Lake Iola	2/12/2014	Richard A. Clinton
Chain Pickerel	6.96 lb		Lake Talquin	6/11/2004	Jep Dove
Shoal Bass	5.95 lb	22.4	Chipola River	11/18/2017	Sheldon Grace
American Shad	5.19 lb		St. Johns River	2/15/1990	Bud Dankert
American Shad	5.19 lb		St. Johns River	3/18/1992	Albert Judy
Yellow Bullhead	5.05 lb		Crystal River	12/17/2010	Tom Flynn
Redear Sunfish	4.86 lb		Merritts Mill Pond	3/13/1986	Joseph Floyd
White Bass	4.69 lb		Apalachicola River	4/9/1982	Richard Davis
Spotted Bass	3.93 lb	18.25	Apalachicola River	6/28/2025	Joe Durden
Suwannee Bass	3.89 lb		Suwannee River	3/2/1985	Ronnie Everett
Black Crappie	3.83 lb		Lake Talquin	1/21/1992	Ben Curry, Sr.
Bluegill	2.95 lb		Crystal Lake	4/19/1989	John LeMaster
Jaguar Guapote	2.78 lb		Snapper Creek (C-2) Canal	6/29/2017	Jerry Martin
Warmouth	2.44 lb		Yellow River	10/19/1985	Tony Dempsey
Mayan Cichlid	2.37 lb	13.6	Golden Gate Canal	11/28/2016	Jonathan Johnson
Oscar	2.34 lb		Lake Okeechobee	3/16/1994	Jimmy Cook
Redbreast Sunfish	2.08 lb		Suwannee River	4/29/1988	Jerrel Dewees, Jr.
Yellow Perch	1.47 lb		Dead Lake	10/23/2005	David Thomas
Flier †	1.36 lb	12	Ocheesee Pond	6/1/2025	Michael Baxley
Flier	1.35 lb	12	A Cypress Pond	5/9/2015	Twila Gates
Redfin Pickerel	1.06 lb		New River	6/6/1993	Mike Milkerson
Spotted Sunfish	0.83 lb		Suwannee River	5/12/1984	Coy Dotson
Common Carpuncertified	40.56 lb		Apalachicola River	5/24/1981	Bernard Rowan
Largemouth Bassuncertified	20.13 lb		Big Fish Lake	5/19/1923	Frederick Friebel
Chain Pickereluncertified	8 lb		Lake Talquin	7/5/1971	Jimmy James
Redeye Bassuncertified	7.83 lb		Apalachicola River	2/18/1989	William Johnston

Source: Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. A row with no link is a name the site holds no species page for, which is usually a hybrid.

Most recorded

The fish of Florida

The species with the most observation records in the state. It is the closest the open data comes to naming the fish people meet.

Yellowtail Snapper73,444 records

Ocyurus chrysurusLutjanidaeNativeSalt

Gray Snapper41,290 records

Lutjanus griseusLutjanidaeNativeFreshSaltBrackish

Saucereye Porgy32,932 records

Calamus calamusSparidaeNativeSalt

Sharpnose Puffer29,661 records

Canthigaster rostrataTetraodontidaeNativeSalt

Schoolmaster Snapper27,777 records

Lutjanus apodusLutjanidaeNativeSaltBrackish

Neon Goby26,317 records

Elacatinus oceanopsGobiidaeNativeSalt

Mutton Snapper23,597 records

Lutjanus analisLutjanidaeNativeSaltBrackish

Lane Snapper22,478 records

Lutjanus synagrisLutjanidaeNativeSalt

Rainwater Killifish21,212 records

Lucania parvaFundulidaeNative and introducedFreshSaltBrackish

Pinfish20,755 records

Lagodon rhomboidesSparidaeNativeFreshSaltBrackish

Scrawled Cowfish20,140 records

Acanthostracion quadricornisOstraciidaeNativeSalt

Smooth Trunkfish19,970 records

Lactophrys triqueterOstraciidaeNativeSalt

Groups

Types of fish in Florida

Species

All 392 species, A–Z

A

B

C

D

E

F

H

I

J

K

L

M

N

O

P

Q

R

S

T

V

W

Y

One record only

41 more with a single record

One observation can be a stray, an aquarium release, or a mis-keyed locality, so these are kept out of the count above and listed here instead. The first 40 are shown.