Bowfin
Scientific Name: Amia calva
Diet: Feeds on fish, crayfish, frogs, and insects
Habitat: Most abundant in clear waters with abundant aquatic
vegetation
Length: Range from 15 to 27 inches with average adult size of
19 inches.
Identification: Dark olive above with lighter sides and a cream colored
belly; long dorsal fin with narrow horizontal band along
top margin and another near base; lower fins vivid
green
Black Crappie
Scientific Name: Pomoxis nigromaculatus
Diet: Feeds on fish and insects
Habitat: Prefers clear water with aquatic vegetation
Length: Average length is 8-12 inches
Identification: Silvery with a dark back and green or blackish mottling
on the sides; "hump-backed" with 7-8 spines in the
dorsal fin
Black Bullhead
Scientific Name: Ameiurus melas
Diet: Feeds at night on insects, crayfish, worms, small
fish
Habitat: More tolerant than other catfish of muddy water,
soft bottoms, and pollution
Length: Average length is 7 to 9 inches
Identification: Dark chin barbels; Dark olive to black with a belly
of white to bright yellow; tail fin is slightly notched
with a light band at its base
Bluegill
Scientific Name: Lepomis macrochirus
Diet: Prefers insects but will feed on worms, snails, small
fish, and plant material
Habitat: Found in lakes with clear water and some aquatic
vegetation
Length: Average length is 5-7 inches
Identification: Dark olive-green back and sides yellow or reddish
below; dark vertical bars usually present on sides; chin
and gill covers bright blue; black, flexible tip at rear of
gill cover
Bluntnose Minnow
Scientific Name: Pimephales notatus
Length: Average length is 2.5 inches
Identification: Broad, flat area just before the dorsal fin; pale olivegreen above, silvery-bluish sides and silvery beneath;
faint spot appears in first few rays of dorsal fin; dark
lateral band from snout to tail; spot at base of caudal
fin.
Carp
Scientific Name: Cyprinus carpio
Diet: Feeds on insects and some plant material
Habitat: Prefers sluggish streams and lakes with rich organic
bottom
Length: Average length is 16 to 18 inches
Identification: Gray to olive on sides and yellow or white on belly;
robust body that is compressed laterally with a long
dorsal fin; conspicuous barbel on either side of mouth
Channel Catfish
Scientific Name: Ictalurus punctatus
Diet: Feeds at night on crayfish, fish, insects, and a variety of
other natural foods
Habitat: Prefers moving water with clean gravel, sand, or rocky
bottom
Length: Average length is 12 to 20 inches
Identification: Silvery-gray above fading to lighter shades on the belly;
body marked with dark spots (may be obscure in adults);
tail fin deeply forked; may reach lengths of about 20
inches by 10 years of age
Creek Chub
Scientific Name Semotilus atromaculatus
Length: Average length about 4 inches
Identification: Olive to purplish back fading to a silvery-white on belly; lateral
stripe from tip of snout to base of tail fin; stout body with broad,
blunt head; small, flap-like barbel in groove in middle of upper jaw;
very large mouth; wedge-shaped spot at base of tail and black
spot in first 3 rays of dorsal fin
Flathead Catfish
Scientific Name: Pylodictis olivaris
Diet: Feeds on fish, especially bullheads
Habitat: Prefers sluggish rivers with deep pools and hard
bottoms
Length: Average length is 20 to30 inches
Identification: Dark to olive brown with dark brownish mottlings
on sides; anal fin is very short and tail fin is
square or slightly notched; head broad and flat
Freshwater Drum
Scientific Name: Aplodinotus grunniens
Diet: Feeds on mussels, snails, crayfish, insects, fish
Habitat: Prefers pools and channels in rivers with clear water and clean
bottoms
Length: Average length is 10 to 14 inches
Identification: Deep bodied, silvery fish; head and body slope steeply up from
the snout and dorsal fin; long dorsal fin divided into two lobes;
commonly weigh up to 5 lbs
Golden Shiner
Scientific Name: Notemigonus crysoleucas
Length: Average length is 4 inches
Identification: Lateral line strongly curved below center line; anal fin is long, with
11-13 rays, and is distinctly falcate shaped; no scales covering the
belly ridge
Green Sunfish
Scientific Name: Lepomis cyanellus
Food: Insects, small fish
Habitat: Found in a large selection of waters such as small brooks to
large lakes. Prefers weed shorelines or rocky cover rather
than open water.
Length: Rarely exceeds 7 inches in length
Identification: Bluish green back and sides with white to light yellow belly;
sides of the head mottled with emerald and yellow streaks;
black ear flap has a whitish or yellowish margin; leading
edges of the dorsal, anal and caudal fins typically whitish or
yellow-orange
Largemouth Bass
Scientific Name: Micropterus salmoides
Diet: Feeds on fish, insects, crayfish, frogs, and tadpoles
Habitat: Prefers clear lakes with aquatic vegetation
Length: Commonly reach lengths up to 16 inches by three years of
age
Identification: Body green-shaded with a broad, continuous dark stripe
along each side; belly white to yellowish; dorsal fin almost
completely separated between spiny and soft portion and
lower jaw extends past the gold-colored eye
Longear Sunfish
Scientific Name: Lepomis megalotis
Diet: Feeds mainly on insects
Habitat: Prefers clear, gravel bottom streams and lakes
Length: Average length is 5-7 inches
Identification: Moderate-sized mouth that nearly extends to front of
eye when closed; spiny dorsal fin with 10 spines,
connected to soft part in a continuous fin; blue-green
sides with yellow or orange belly; sides speckled with
yellow
Northern Hog Sucker
Scientific Name: Hypentelium nigricans
Length: Average length is 8 inches
Identification: Body is mottled brownish with a large, bony head,
squarish in cross section with the interspace between
the eyes broad and curved inward, this species is the
host of the glochidial stage of the elk toe mussel
Redear Sunfish
Scientific Name: Lepomis microlophus
Diet: Feeds on snails and insects
Habitat: Clear lakes with some aquatic vegetation
Length: Average length is 4-6 inches
Identification: back and sides golden or light olive green with
several dark vertical bars that disappear in older
fish; rounded ear flap has a whitish border with a
prominent red or orange spot in adults
Northern Redhorse Sucker
Scientific Name: Moxostoma macrolepidotum
Diet: Feed on insects and small mollusks
Habitat: Prefers clear rivers and medium-sized streams with
gravelly riffles and permanent pools
Length: Average is 11 inches
Identification: Body is long, slender, and compressed. Back is dark to
tan olive with sides olive yellow and body whitish. Caudal
and dorsal fins pale to bright red while paired fins are
salmon to reddish orange. Anal fin is orange to red with
white edge. Scales have dark spots at base
Rock Bass or Goggle Eye
Scientific Name: Ambloplites rupestris
Diet: Feeds on crayfish, fish, and insects
Habitat: Prefers clear gravelly stream near submerged cover
such as rocks, ledges, and drift piles
Length: Average length is 6 to 8 inches
Identification: Olive colored with brassy reflections and dark mottlings
along the sides, whitish breast and belly; 6 spines in anal
fin and 12 in the dorsal.
Sauger
Scientific Name: Stizostedion canadense
Diet: Feeds on fish, crayfish, and insects
Habitat: Prefers large, sluggish rivers
Length: Average length is 12 to 13 inches
Identification: usually olive-gray on back with white belly; back
crossed with 3-4 dark saddles extending down
sides; 2-3 rows of black dots on the anterior
dorsal fin; large, glossy eyes and sharp teeth
Smallmouth Bass
Scientific Name: Micropterus dolomieu
Diet: Feeds on crayfish, fish, and insects
Habitat: Prefers natural lakes and streams with gravel
bottoms
Length: Average length is 9 to 14 inches
Identification: Golden green sides and back with faint, wavy olive
blotches along the sides, 5 olive-green bars radiate
back from the red eye and 1 radiates forward; spiny
and soft portions of dorsal fin broadly connected
Spotted Bass
Scientific Name: Micropterus punctulatus
Diet: Feeds on fish, crayfish, and insects
Habitat: Prefers large, slow current streams with deep pools
Length: Average length is 10 to 17 inches
Identification: Slender, streamlined shape, large mouth that extends
slightly past rear margin of eye when closed; greenish
sides with dark mottlings and golden-shaded
reflections; broad dark stripe along side, but more
broken and uneven than on largemouth bass
White Striped Bass
Scientific Name: Morone saxatilis
Length: Average is 20 inches
Identification: Deep flat body, small head and distinct back
arch of white bass; dark gray or blue silvery
body and thick dark longitudinal body stripes of
ocean striped bass
Warmouth
Scientific Name: Lepomis gulosus
Diet: Feeds on insects, crayfish, fish
Habitat: Prefers natural lakes and sluggish streams with
abundant aquatic vegetation
Length: Average length is 5 to 8 inches
Identification: Thick bodied with olive-brown color on back and
sides; sides covered with dark mottlings, belly
yellow; 4 to 5 red/brown streaks from the red eye,
closed mouth extends to eye
White Sucker
Scientific Name: Catostomus commersoni
Diet: Feed on insects and small mollusks
Habitat: Prefers clear rivers and medium-sized streams with
gravelly riffles and permanent pools
Length: Average length is 9.5 inches
Identification: Slender, fine-scaled sucker; tinted dark greenish along
back; sides with brassy or silvery luster; white belly, lips
with numerous wart-like projections
White Crappie
Scientific Name: Pomoxis annularis
Diet: Feeds on fish and insects
Habitat: Prefers clear water with aquatic vegetation, will
tolerate some muddy water
Length: Average length is 6 to 14 inches
Identification: Silvery body that shades to green or brown on the
back; several (7-9) dark vertical bars on each side
and whitish belly; "hump-backed" with 6 spines in
the dorsal fin; seldom exceed 2 pounds
Yellow Bass
Scientific Name: Morone mississippiensis
Diet: Feeds on small fish and insects
Habitat: Prefers clear rivers and lakes
Length: Average is 6 to 8 inches
Identification: Laterally compressed, slab sided spiny rayed; yellowolive to silvery-yellow along back and sides; yellowish
white belly; 6 to 7 prominent dark horizontal stripes
along sides
Yellow Bullhead
Scientific Name: Ameiurus natalis
Diet: Generally feeds at night on insects, crayfish, worms, and
small fish.
Habitat: Prefers clear water with abundant aquatic vegetation
Length: Average length is 6.5 to 9 inches
Identification: Light olive brown to yellow on top, with white or cream
colored barbels; 24-27 rays in anal fin
Yellow Perch
Scientific Name: Perca flavescens
Diet: Feeds on small fish and insects
Habitat: Prefers clear lakes with abundant aquatic vegetation
Length: Average length is 5 to 9 inches
Identification: Sides bright yellow to brassy green with 7 dark vertical
bars; lighter belly and dark olive green back