Locations

Fish species in North Carolina

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

392 species have two or more US observation records in North Carolina. ITIS calls 252 of them native to the United States, 131 native to part of the country and introduced elsewhere, and 9 introduced.

Species: 392
Freshwater: 261
Saltwater: 174
Survey list: 165

1state

North Carolina in the United States.

Two counts, two questions. 392 is the number of species observed in North Carolina and filed with GBIF, which includes lakes, the coast, and museum records. 165 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 North Carolina

Southern Appalachian brook trout (freshwater trout)

Salvelinus fontinalis · named 2005

Channel bass (saltwater)

Sciaenops ocellatus · named 1971

sosnc.gov · ncpedia.org

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 North Carolina

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

Bluegill4,281 records

Lepomis macrochirusCentrarchidaeNative and introducedFresh

Redbreast Sunfish3,283 records

Lepomis auritusCentrarchidaeNative and introducedFresh

Bluehead Chub2,930 records

Nocomis leptocephalusLeuciscidaeNative and introducedFresh

Rosyside Dace1,828 records

Clinostomus funduloidesLeuciscidaeNative and introducedFresh

Creek Chub1,785 records

Semotilus atromaculatusLeuciscidaeNative and introducedFresh

Central Stoneroller1,741 records

Campostoma anomalumLeuciscidaeNative and introducedFresh

Northern Hog Sucker1,669 records

Hypentelium nigricansCatostomidaeNative and introducedFresh

Largemouth Bass1,659 records

Micropterus salmoidesCentrarchidaeNative and introducedFresh

Pirate Perch1,634 records

Aphredoderus sayanusAphredoderidaeNativeFresh

Margined Madtom1,500 records

Noturus insignisIctaluridaeNative and introducedFresh

Fantail Darter1,286 records

Etheostoma flabellarePercidaeNativeFresh

Satinfin Shiner1,272 records

Cyprinella analostanaLeuciscidaeNative and introducedFresh

Groups

Types of fish in North Carolina

Species

All 392 species, A–Z

A

B

C

D

E

F

H

I

J

K

L

M

N

O

P

Q

Quillback Carpiodes cyprinus

R

S

T

V

Y

One record only

39 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 39 are shown.