OTHER FRESHWATER FISHES
AMERICAN EEL
(Anguilla rostrata)
Common name - American Eel (pencil eel, yellow eel, black eel, silver
eel, Boston eel, Atlantic eel or common eel)
Description - The body is extremely elongated (snakelike), with a very
long dorsal fin that is confluent with the anal fin. Pelvic fins are
absent and tiny scales are embedded in the skin giving eels a smooth feel.
The adult color is a yellow-brown with pale underbelly
Subspecies - It is a distinct species with no known subspecies.
Similar species exist around Japan, Australia and Europe.
Range - American eels are found in waters with coastal access along the
Atlantic seaboard of the US.
Habitat - Eels are primarily riverine but access ponds and lakes.
They orient to structure and flow. Spawning Habits - Spawning is still
not well understood but fascinating. The adults migrate to the ocean
during autumn. During the long trek the fish metamorphose into a
"silver eel" stage lose their vision and stop eating. Meanwhile, the
gonads expand dramatically. The fish head to a location near the
Sargasso Sea where they spawn en masse and apparently die. The eggs
hatch into leaf-shaped floating leptocephalus larvae that drift with the
currents. When they come within range of a freshwater river, the
leptocephalus metamorphoses again into a tiny semi-transparent "glass eel"
that buries itself in the sand. The glass eel that changes again into
a pigmented pencil eel and continues its migration upstream to find a
habitat to mature and await it's time to go spawn. This process of
spawning in the ocean and maturing inland is termed catadromy (the fish are
catadromous).
Feeding habits - Brown eels are predators that feed on insects,
crustaceans, mollusks and some fish. Although often associated with
decaying food, they prefer live food.
Age and Growth - American eels are known to live as long as 43 years,
but generally migrate to spawn and die long before then.
Sporting Qualities - Not generally considered to be a sport fish in
this country. They can be caught on hook and line and are taken
commercially.
Eating Qualities - This is a gourmet fish in the Asian markets and is
often used in Sushi. It tends to be bony by American standards but
is good smoked.
State and World Records - The largest on record is an approximately
60-inch long male weighing about 16 pounds.
GOLDEN SHINER
(Notemigonus chrysoleucas)
Common name - Golden Shiner
Description - A golden hue with reddish fins is typical of this species
that has a small soft-rayed dorsal fin and like other shiners has a
lateral line (the series of sensory holes along the side of a fish) that
dips downward.
Range - Widely distributed along the east coast of North America from
Canada south and throughout Florida and as far west as the Dakotas.
Habitat - Typical of vegetated ponds and lakes, also found in slack
waters of rivers.
Spawning Habits - Shiners lay their sticky eggs primarily on vegetative substrates. In
hatcheries mats are laid out to collect the eggs. Breeders are over
one year old and typically 3-8 inches long. Males are significantly
smaller than females at the same age.
Feeding habits - Shiners consume small
insects, tiny mollusks, small fishes and perhaps algae.
Age and Growth - They live up to about 5 years and reach a maximum size
of nearly one foot.
Sporting Qualities - Golden shiners are one of the most popular baits
used by anglers seeking trophy bass. However, their small delicate
scales dislodge easily and they require careful handling. See
here, for how to collect your own
and fish with them.
Eating Qualities - N/A
State Record - N/A
EASTERN MOSQUITO FISH
 (Gambusia holbrooki)
Common names - Mosquito fish (gambusia, pot belly).
Description - A diminutive silver-colored, live-bearing minnow that is
common throughout Florida. A greenish tinge is sometimes noted
especially when looking down on the back of the fish. It has a small
up-turned mouth and the area over and behind the head is somewhat
flattened.
Varieties - the Western Mosquito Fish G. affinis is very
similar.
Range - Throughout Florida and the eastern US.
Habitat - Normally found in the shallows among vegetation. Often
oriented upward searching for larvae and creating small ripples at the
surface. Spawning Habits - A live-bearer the male has a modified anal
fin (gonopodium) used for inserting the sperm into the vent of the female,
which gives live birth.
Feeding habits - Primarily feeds on mosquito larvae at the surface of a
lake or pond.
Age and Growth - Maximum size is about three inches for females and
smaller for males.
Sporting Qualities - N/A. Because of its affinity for consuming
mosquito larvae it is often stocked in small ponds to help control
mosquitoes. However, its efficacy in this role is in doubt.
Eating Qualities - N/A
State and World Records - N/A
ATLANTIC STURGEON
(Acipenser oxyrinchus oxyrinchus)
Common name - Atlantic sturgeon
Description - Sturgeon in general are easily recognizable by the bony
plates on their bodies and barbels (whiskers) on their chin.
Sturgeon are among the oldest living species of fish and retain many
primitive characteristics typical of fish during the age of the dinosaurs.
Almost two dozen species of sturgeon can be found in the Northern
Hemisphere, of which seven occur in North America. The Gulf race
(subspecies?) of Atlantic sturgeon have
a V-shaped snout with two pairs of barbels and two rows of plates in front
of the vent. The back is typically blue black with a white or cream
colored belly.
Subspecies - The Gulf Race of Atlantic sturgeon is generally recognized
as A. o. de sotoi.
Range - From Canada down along the Atlantic Coast to the St. Johns
River and into the Gulf of Mexico as the A. o. de sotoi subspecies.
Habitat - Stays primarily in shallow offshore waters but come in to the
rivers to spawn. Spawning Habits - Spawning takes place in fresh water (anadromous)
when temperatures approach 64 degrees Fahrenheit. The demersal eggs
take about a week to hatch. The young may stay in fresh water up to
five years and females take 5-30 years to mature. Even then, they only
spawn every 3-5 years and so are very vulnerable to over fishing. Feeding
habits - Bottom feeders consuming primarily mollusks and other sedentary
bottom dwelling organisms.
Age and Growth - Atlantic sturgeon have been known to reach 14 feet in
length, weigh over 800 pounds and live for at least 60 years.
Sporting Qualities - Primarily taken by snagging they are now
protected. Commercial fisheries for their flesh and particularly for
their roe (eggs that are sold as caviar) has led in part to their
threatened status.
Eating Qualities - Flesh is primarily smoked the eggs are considered a
gourmet item.
State and World Records -
SHORTNOSE STURGEON
 (Acipenser
brevirostrum)
COMMON NAMES - Shortnose sturgeon
DESCRIPTION - Sturgeon are primitivefishes, with a heterocercal tail
(the upper lobe is much longer than the lower lobe) like many sharks.
The body is covered with 5 rows of large bony plates. These fish have a
tube-like mouth located on the underside of the head. The mouth protrudes
several inches when the fish is feeding. Shortnose sturgeon range in color
from grayish-olive to brownish above, shading to white on the belly.
Shortnose sturgeon have wider mouths (inside the lips; the width is
greater than 60 percent of the distance between the eyes, while Atlantic
sturgeon have small mouths that measure 50 percent or less) and the snout
is more U-shaped in the shortnose than in the Atlantic. SUBSPECIES - None.
RANGE - Shortnose sturgeon are restricted to the east coast of North
America, from the St. John River in Canada, to the Indian River in
Florida.
HABITAT -
SPAWNING HABITS - Shortnose sturgeon have very specific spawning
requirements. All spawning occurs in fresh water within a 1- to 2-week
period during spring. If environmental conditions are not acceptable,
shortnose sturgeon will not spawn, resorbing their eggs and milt (sperm).
Females only spawn every 3 to 5 years after reaching sexual maturity at
age 8 to 12. Males may spawn every year after reaching age 6 to 10.
FEEDING HABITS - Bottom feeders using their barbels to sense worms and
mollusks, and protrudable mouth to suck them up. AGE AND GROWTH - The
largest recorded shortnose sturgeon, a female weighing over 90 pounds, was
captured in the St. John River in Canada SPORTING QUALITIES - None
EATING QUALITY - Rarely used compared to the Atlantic and Beluga
STATE RECORD - N/A.
BOWFIN
(Amia calva)
Common Names - mudfish, mud pike, dogfish, grindle, blackfish,
cottonfish, swamp bass, cypress trout
Description - The bowfin is the only living representative of an
ancient family of fishes. It has an air-bladder which functions
somewhat like a lung, and they are often seen near the surface of the
water gulping mouthfuls of air. They are easily recognized by its
flattened head; long, stout body; large mouth full of small, sharp
teeth; long dorsal fin that extends along most of the back; and
rounded tail. The pelvic fins are set far back on the belly near the
middle of the body and the pectoral fins are low on the sides so that
the overall appearance is one of three sets of fins in a row; the
pectorals behind the head, the pelvics near the midbody, and the anal
fin near the tail. Also, two short tube-like barbels are located near
the nostrils. The body is olive-green above, shading to pale yellow
or cream on the belly. Several dark brown, horizontal bars are often
evident on the cheeks. Males have a dark spot with a bright orange
halo, on the upper part of the tail fin. The spot is absent or
inconspicuous on females.
Subspecies - There are no known subspecies.
Range - Found throughout Florida.
Habitat - Prefers swamps, sloughs and pools, backwaters of lowland
streams. Usually found near vegetation. They live in warm, poorly
oxygenated waters that are uninhabitable to most fishes.
Spawning Habits - Spawning generally occurs during the spring.
Males clear out a nesting area among heavy aquatic vegetation. The
eggs are laid at night by one or more females. The males guard the
eggs and protect the young. The eggs hatch in six to 10 days and the
larvae attach themselves to the substrate with an adhesive organ on
the tip of their nose. The young begin to fend for themselves when
about one and one-half inches long, but remain well hidden in heavy
vegetation until they are about 10 inches in length.
Feeding Habits - About 80 percent of their diet consists of fish,
with crayfish being the second most dominant food item. They stalk
their prey using their senses of smell and sight.
Age and Growth - Growth is very rapid. Bowfin may grow to over
three feet long and weigh over 15 pounds. Although reported to live
for 25 to 30 years in captivity, bowfin seldom live longer than nine
years in the wild.
Sporting Qualities - Bowfin are caught often by sport fishermen,
but are considered nuisances. Many anglers fishing for bass have been
surprised to find that a bowfin has taken their lure. While it will
strike topwater and deep-running artificials, it is most often caught
in the spring and early summer on minnows, worms, frogs, crayfish or
cut bait. It is an excellent fighter, better than some highly rated
game fish.
Eating Quality - The flesh is soft and jelly-like, but it is good
to eat if prepared properly. Three methods of serving are smoked,
fried as patties after dipping in egg and bread crumbs, and stewed.
World Record - 21.50 pounds, caught in Forest Lake, South Carolina
in 1980.
State Record - 19 pounds, caught in Lake Kissimmee in 1984.
AMERICAN SHAD
 (Alosa
sapidissima)
COMMON NAMES - White shad
DESCRIPTION - Green or greenish blue with metallic luster on back;
silvery sides; body compressed; upper jaw with a smaller or larger
median notch; lower jaw not protruding beyond upper jaw, teeth
missing in examples greater than 8 inches; adipose eyelid present,
chest and abdomen with bony scutes; pectoral fin without a free
axillary process; cheek deeper than long; sometimes with a few spots
on sides behind shoulder spot.
SUBSPECIES - None; very similar to Hickory shad (Alosa
mediocris) which also occurs in the St. Johns River, Florida.
RANGE - St. Lawrence River, Canada to St. Johns River, Florida. In
Florida, it occurs only in the northeast, mostly in the St. Johns
River and Nassau River.
HABITAT - Anadromous; lives most of its life at sea
SPAWNING HABITS - Most spawning occurs between late December and
early April in the stretch of the St. Johns River from Sanford to
Melbourne. Eggs are spawned directly into the river where they drift
freely for 2-3 days. Juveniles leave the river when it cools in late
fall or early winter. Juveniles mature into adults in the Atlantic
Ocean and do not return to the St. Johns River until they are ready
to spawn, two to five years later. In the St. Johns River and all
other rivers below Cape Fear, North Carolina, shad die after they
spawn.
FEEDING HABITS - Plankton feeders, but strikes small bright spoons
and flies.
AGE AND GROWTH Two to four inches long when they leave the river
(6 to 10 months). Size up to 30 inches.
SPORTING QUALITIES - Historically the sport fishery was mostly a
troll boat fishery with some spin casting from the bank. In recent
times, fly fishing has become very extensive. Recreational fishing
began in the early 1940s near Deland. The sport fishery is primarily
located between Sanford and Melbourne.
EATING QUALITY - Flesh good. especially smoked; roe is excellent.
STATE RECORD - 5.19 pounds - St. Johns River, Seminole County
2/15/90
St. Johns River, Volusia County 3/18/92
Largest on record - 13.5 pounds
SKIPJACK HERRING
 (Alosa chrysochloris)
COMMON NAMES - Skipjack herring (skipjack shad)
DESCRIPTION - A typical herring or shad it is silvery colored with a
small dorsal fin, deeply forked caudal fin and small mouth. The
lower jaw on a skipjack extends in front of the upper jaw and the fish is
very compressed (flattened side to side). There is no dark marking
on the shoulder. RANGE - Primarily known from the Mississippi River
drainages and other rivers entering the northern Gulf of Mexico. HABITAT -
Freshwater areas over sand or gravel primarily. SPAWNING HABITS - A
migratory species that spawns in groups broadcasting their eggs and milt.
FEEDING HABITS - Their name derives from the fact that schools of these fish
will jump out of the water skipping across the surface, especially at dawn
and dusk, in pursuit of small minnows and insect larvae. AGE AND GROWTH -
Up to 20 inches and about 3.75 pounds. SPORTING QUALITIES - Minor,
typically used more for bait but sometimes taken on flies. EATING QUALITY
- N/A STATE RECORD - None, qualifying weight is 3 pounds, big catch
qualifying sizes are 16 inches or 1.5 pounds.
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American Eel
