Fish starting with C

Cabillus caudimacula

A small goby with a natural range restricted to the Hawaiian Islands.

Caddo Madtom

Lives in southwestern Arkansas, including the Caddo, Ouachita and Little Missouri river systems.

Cahaba Bass

A bass native only to Alabama’s Cahaba River system.

Cahaba Shiner

An Alabama shiner with a naturally narrow range centered on the Cahaba River.

California Killifish

A coastal killifish found along southern California and Mexico’s Baja California Peninsula.

California Needlefish

An eastern Pacific needlefish ranging from northern California toward Peru, including the Gulf of California and Galapagos Islands.

California Roach

A western North American minnow common in central California’s seasonally flowing streams.

Candy Darter

Native to the Kanawha River system in Virginia and West Virginia. Its natural range is limited to this Appalachian drainage.

Caney Fork Darter

Uses clear riffles in small rivers, especially where gravel covers the streambed.

Cantherhines verecundus

A marine filefish whose natural distribution is associated with the Hawaiian Islands.

Cape Fear Shiner

Lives in shallow streams within North Carolina’s Cape Fear River basin.

Capelin

A small schooling fish of cold northern seas, including the Arctic, North Atlantic and North Pacific.

Cardinal Shiner

Found in rocky and sandy pools and flowing runs, from headwater creeks to smaller rivers.

Cardinal Snapper

A Caribbean snapper recorded around Cuba and the Lesser Antilles and along Central America’s Caribbean coast toward Colombia.

Carmine Shiner

Canadian populations occur in the Winnipeg River system, including the Whitemouth watershed.

Carolina Darter

Favors sluggish creeks and headwaters, using muddy or rocky pools and quiet backwaters.

Carolina Fantail Darter

Lives in Carolina and Virginia river systems, including the Santee, Savannah and Yadkin drainages.

Carolina Madtom

A small catfish native only to North Carolina, with a much narrower range than familiar sport catfish.

Carolina Pygmy Sunfish

A tiny sunfish native to the Waccamaw and Santee river systems of the Carolinas.

Celebes Goby

A goby recorded around the Andaman Islands, Sulawesi, the Philippines and southern Japan.

Central Greenside Darter

A greenside darter form recorded in Illinois’s Middle Fork River system, including Bean Creek.

Central Mudminnow

A small fish of central and eastern North America, associated with productive inland waters.

Central Stoneroller

Uses gravel-bottomed riffles and pools in streams with moderate or relatively steep gradients.

Chain Pickerel

Uses flooded vegetation as spawning habitat in late winter and early spring.

Chain Pipefish

A slender pipefish ranging from Virginia and Bermuda through the northern Gulf of Mexico to Jamaica and Campeche.

Chameleon Goby

A coastal East Asian goby that uses both saltwater and brackish habitats.

Channa aurolineata

A snakehead with introduced populations recorded in southeastern Florida.

Featured

Channel Catfish

Takes worms, shrimp and prepared baits fished near the bottom. Commonly found in lakes, ponds and rivers.

Channel Darter

Uses shallow sand and gravel along lake shores, plus riffles in small and medium-sized rivers.

Channel Shiner

A freshwater shiner widely distributed within the Mississippi River basin.

Characin

An unidentified characin; this diverse group includes small tetras and much larger fishes with very different diets.

Chattahoochee Bass

Native to the Chattahoochee River system in eastern Alabama and western Georgia, with introduced populations in Puerto Rico.

Checkered Dualspot Goby

Lives in creeks, streams and estuaries, sometimes traveling upstream beyond the reach of the tides.

Checkered Madtom

A small catfish associated with river systems in Arkansas and Missouri.

Checkered Puffer

A coastal puffer recorded in Florida’s Indian River Lagoon, among other parts of its range.

Cherokee Darter

Found naturally only in Georgia’s Etowah River system. This darter has a restricted freshwater range.

Cherry Darter

Native to the upper Caney Fork system in Tennessee, within the Cumberland River drainage.

Cherryfin Shiner

A southeastern shiner native to Mississippi, Alabama and Louisiana.

Chesapeake Fantail Darter

A freshwater darter associated with the southeastern United States, including Florida.

Chesapeake Logperch

Favors gravel runs and riffles in small and medium-sized rivers.

Chestnut Lamprey

Often uses quiet pools and backwaters over sand or soft, sandy mud.

Chickasaw Darter

Lives in smaller streams within western Tennessee’s Forked Deer River system.

Chihuahua Chub

A freshwater chub found in Chihuahua, Mexico, and across the border in New Mexico.

Chihuahua Shiner

Occurs in the Rio Grande drainage, including the lower Pecos River and waters near the Rio Conchos junction.

Chinese Catfish

An East Asian catfish native to waters of southern China, Taiwan, Japan and northern parts of mainland Southeast Asia.

Featured

Chinook Salmon

Native to the North Pacific and western North American rivers. River systems provide important freshwater habitat.

Chiselmouth

Uses warmer stretches of streams and rivers in the Columbia, Fraser and Harney-Malheur drainage systems.

Chiseltooth Goby

Uses freshwater and brackish habitats around Japan, the Philippines, Indonesia, Palau and Micronesia.

Choctawhatchee Darter

Lives in quiet creek and small-river pools, particularly over sand and mud.

Christmas Darter

A darter of the Savannah, Ogeechee and Altamaha river systems in Georgia and South Carolina.

Chub Shiner

Occurs in parts of the lower Mississippi and in Gulf-draining river systems of Texas.

Chucky Madtom

A small catfish associated with streambeds of gravel, cobble and larger rock slabs.

Chum Salmon

Native to North Pacific coastal rivers and the Arctic waters around Beringia.

Cisco

A cold-water fish recorded in relatively shallow portions of the Great Lakes, alongside other northern lake populations.

Citico Darter

Known from a few isolated eastern Tennessee waters, including Abrams Creek, Citico Creek and the Tellico River.

Clarias Catfish

An air-breathing catfish of slow or stagnant water, including swamps, ponds, rice fields and temporary pools.

Clear Chub

Favors sandy or silty bottoms and quieter pools beside flowing riffles.

Clear Creek Gambusia

Lives in clear spring water within the Clear Creek tributary of Texas’s San Saba River.

Clear Lake Splittail

An extinct minnow formerly found only in California’s Clear Lake and its tributaries.

Clearwing Flyingfish

An Atlantic flyingfish ranging from New York and Florida through Caribbean waters toward northeastern Brazil.

Clinging Goby

A goby with records from Timor and the Maluku Islands of Indonesia.

Clown Goby

A small goby recorded along Atlantic United States coasts and the northern and western Gulf of Mexico.

Clown Knifefish

A large tropical knifefish that can approach forty inches long, with a long fin running beneath its body.

Club-bait Goosefish

A western Atlantic anglerfish ranging from North Carolina toward Suriname, including the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean.

Coal Darter

Uses flowing gravel runs and riffles in smaller rivers.

Coastal Cutthroat Trout

Uses streams, rivers and lakes, with freshwater habitats ranging from small creeks to substantial river systems.

Coastal Darter

Lives in headwater creeks and small rivers, favoring pools with sand and gravel bottoms.

Coastal Roach

A freshwater roach native to coastal watersheds west of the mountain ranges in northern California.

Coastal Shiner

Native to Atlantic- and Gulf-draining waters of the United States.

Coastrange Sculpin

A Pacific coastal sculpin ranging from Alaska and the Aleutians south to central California.

Cobow Trout

A cross between coho salmon and rainbow trout, combining two Pacific salmon-family fishes.

Cocoa Snapper

A western Pacific snapper recorded around Taiwan and the Ryukyus and from northeastern Australia toward Fiji.

Cocos Frillfin Goby

A coastal goby ranging from eastern Africa across the Indo-Pacific toward Hawaii, Pitcairn and southern Japan.

Code Goby

A small goby of Florida and Gulf of Mexico coastal waters, including parts of Mexico.

Coho Salmon

Young coho eat aquatic insect larvae and insects that fall into streams, along with other small invertebrates.

Coin-bearing Frogfish

A frogfish with scattered records across the eastern Atlantic, Indian Ocean and western Pacific.

Coldwater Darter

Native to the Coosa River system across parts of Georgia, Alabama and Tennessee.

Collybus drachme

A marine pomfret recorded around Hawaii, including waters off Niihau Island.

Colorado Pikeminnow

Historically ranged throughout the Colorado River basin, spanning the southwestern United States and northern Mexico.

Colorado River Cutthroat Trout

A cutthroat trout native to portions of the Colorado River drainage, including several western mountain states.

Colorado Snapper

An eastern Pacific snapper ranging from southern California to Ecuador, including the Gulf of California and Galapagos Islands.

Comanche Springs Pupfish

A desert pupfish now associated with spring-fed pools near Balmorhea in West Texas.

Comely Shiner

Favors streams and other inland waters with depths of roughly two feet or more.

Commerson’s Frogfish

A tropical and subtropical frogfish with a broad range across the Indian and Pacific oceans.

Common Carp

Favors slow or still water with soft bottoms and vegetation, especially in larger bodies of water.

Common Goatfish

A goatfish ranging across the eastern Indian and Pacific oceans, from Christmas Island toward Hawaii and southern Japan.

Common Shiner

Often lives in rocky pools within small and medium-sized rivers.

Common Snook

Uses coastal creeks, wetland ponds and channels around islands in warm coastal environments.

Conasauga Logperch

Feeds on aquatic invertebrates hidden beneath stones, searching the riverbed for small prey.

Conchos Pupfish

A pupfish of the Rio Grande basin in Texas and northern Mexico.

Conchos Shiner

A shiner native to the upper Rio Grande system, including Texas and the Mexican states of Chihuahua and Durango.

Contantino Snook

An Atlantic snook ranging from Florida south toward southern Brazil, including the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean.

Coosa Chub

A freshwater chub native to Alabama, northwestern Georgia and southeastern Tennessee.

Coosa Darter

An eastern United States darter with a native range centered on southeastern river systems.

Coosa Shiner

Lives above the fall line in the Coosa and Tallapoosa systems of Tennessee, Georgia and Alabama.

Coppercheek Darter

Favors clear, fast-moving water over rocky riffles.

Corrugated Darter

A Tennessee darter native to the Caney Fork system, where several separate population groups have been identified.

Cownose Ray

A coastal ray associated with relatively shallow water and estuaries.

Creek Chub

More strongly associated with streams and rivers than lakes. Flowing inland waters provide its typical habitat.

Creole Darter

Uses creek and river riffles, including gravel beds, water-swept plants and submerged debris.

Crescent Shiner

Lives in headwater creeks and smaller rivers, occupying pools and runs over rock or sand.

Crested Goby

Ranges from southern Florida and Bermuda through the Caribbean and along Central and northern South America.

Crevalle Jack

Uses bays, reefs and lagoons as well as offshore water, occasionally entering estuaries.

Croaking Gourami

Native to still waters in Southeast Asia, including Thailand, Borneo and parts of Java.

Crown Darter

A southeastern freshwater darter found in Tennessee and Alabama.

Crystal Darter

Lives in rivers of the Mississippi and Ohio basins, including waterways with moderate to swift currents.

Cuban Anchovy

A coastal anchovy ranging from North Carolina through the Caribbean toward southeastern Brazil.

Cuban Cusk-eel

A Cuban cavefish that eats small aquatic crustaceans while living in caves, sinkholes and underground crevices.

Cuban Dogfish

A small shark with a slender gray body, black-tipped dorsal fins and a lighter underside.

Cubera Snapper

Associated with rocky ledges and reefs, where underwater structure provides habitat for this large snapper.

Cuchia

An eel-like freshwater fish found across South Asia, including Pakistan, India, Nepal, Bangladesh and Myanmar.

Cui-ui

Native to Nevada’s Pyramid Lake. It also inhabited nearby Winnemucca Lake before that lake dried out.

Cumberland Darter

Favors shallow, slow stream sections and pools over sand or silt rather than coarse rock.

Cumberland Plateau Darter

Uses rocky riffles and pools in headwater creeks and small rivers of the Cumberland Plateau region.

Cumberland Snubnose Darter

Lives in gravel riffles of small and medium-sized streams. Eggs attach to the bottom and receive no parental guarding.

Current Darter

Usually occupies shallow gravel riffles, with some use of rocky runs and pools in headwater streams.

Current Saddled Darter

A saddled darter form native to Missouri and Arkansas waterways.

Cutbow Trout

A cutthroat–rainbow trout hybrid. These crosses can occur where the two trout share freshwater habitat.

Cutlip Minnow

A stream minnow associated with moving water and clear pools over stones.

Cutthroat Trout

Uses clear, well-oxygenated rivers and streams. Gravel-bottomed shallows provide important spawning habitat.

Cutthroat-Golden Trout Hybrid

A hybrid combining cutthroat trout and golden trout, two western North American cold-water fishes.

Cypress Darter

Uses plant-lined lake margins and swamp backwaters in summer, then shifts into flooded riffles and bayous during winter.

Cypress Minnow

A United States minnow found in the Mississippi and Ohio drainages and several nearby river systems.

Cyprinodon eremus

A small desert pupfish native to Sonora and Arizona, including the Quitobaquito area.