Freshwater Fishes of Connecticut

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• White Perch

  Adorned with an armament of long, sharp spines, white perch are difficult for both anglers and predators to handle.

• Walleye

  Although relatively feeble fighters on rod and reel, walleye are an esteemed game and food fish throughout their range.

• Striped Bass

  Striped bass grow large and are arguably the most important inshore predator and sport fish in the state.

• Kokanee

  Kokanee prefer relatively clear lakes with cold, well-oxygenated water.

• Sculpins

  Sculpins have a flattened head, large frog-like mouth and eyes, a scaleless body, and large fan-shaped pectoral fins.

• American Soles

  A small family limited to marine waters of the Western Hemisphere.

• Brown Bullhead

  The brown bullhead is Connecticut’s most widely distributed and only native catfish species. They are good to eat, but are typically underutilized by anglers.

• Bluegill

  Bluegills often inhabit shallow areas and are very easy to catch on a variety of small lures or baits (especially worms).

• Rock Bass

  Rock bass have relatively large mouths, so are commonly caught by anglers seeking larger gamefish.

• Rainbow Trout

  Rainbow trout seldom survive the summer in Connecticut and natural reproduction is rare.

• Codfishes

  Codfishes are characterized by having a single barbel on the middle of the chin.

• Atlantic Sturgeon

  Damn building, overfishing and pollution all likely contributed to the demise of Atlantic sturgeon in Connecticut.

• Gizzard Shad

  Gizzard shad were first observed in Connecticut during the late 1970s, apparently the result of a natural range expansion.

• Spotfin Killifish

  Due to their small size, spotfin killifish are difficult to identify and often mistaken for young mummichog.

• Atlantic Silverside

  Their abundance makes them very important forage fish for many marine predators such as striped bass, fluke and seabirds.