Locations

Fish species in New Jersey

190 species have two or more US observation records in New Jersey. Explore their habitats, families, and local records.

190 species have two or more US observation records in New Jersey. ITIS calls 103 of them native to the United States, 79 native to part of the country and introduced elsewhere, and 8 introduced.

Species: 190
Freshwater: 126
Saltwater: 100
Survey list: 74

1state

New Jersey in the United States.

Two counts, two questions. 190 is the number of species observed in New Jersey and filed with GBIF, which includes lakes, the coast, and museum records. 74 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 New Jersey

Brook trout (freshwater)

Salvelinus fontinalis · named 1991

state.nj.us · hdl.handle.net

Striped bass (saltwater game fish)

Morone saxatilis · named 2017

northjersey.com

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.

Most recorded

The fish of New Jersey

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

Brown Trout8,933 records

Salmo truttaSalmonidaeIntroducedFreshSaltBrackish

Bluegill8,450 records

Lepomis macrochirusCentrarchidaeNative and introducedFresh

Pumpkinseed6,397 records

Lepomis gibbosusCentrarchidaeNative and introducedFreshBrackish

Brook Trout6,033 records

Salvelinus fontinalisSalmonidaeNative and introducedFreshSaltBrackish

Largemouth Bass5,223 records

Micropterus salmoidesCentrarchidaeNative and introducedFresh

Lake Trout2,503 records

Salvelinus namaycushSalmonidaeNative and introducedFresh

Redbreast Sunfish2,392 records

Lepomis auritusCentrarchidaeNative and introducedFresh

Walleye2,271 records

Sander vitreusPercidaeNative and introducedFreshBrackish

Yellow Perch2,083 records

Perca flavescensPercidaeNative and introducedFreshBrackish

Chain Pickerel2,033 records

Esox nigerEsocidaeNative and introducedFresh

Brown Bullhead1,734 records

Ameiurus nebulosusIctaluridaeNative and introducedFresh

Golden Shiner1,666 records

Notemigonus crysoleucasLeuciscidaeNative and introducedFreshBrackish

Groups

Types of fish in New Jersey

Species

All 190 species, A–Z

A

B

C

D

E

F

G

H

I

J

L

M

N

O

P

Q

Quillback Carpiodes cyprinus

R

S

T

W

Y

One record only

45 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.