Fish starting with R

Railroad Valley Springfish

Native to a small group of warm springs in Nevada’s Railroad Valley.

Rainbow Darter

A North American darter of fast-moving streams and small to medium-sized rivers.

Rainbow Prigi

A gudgeon recorded around Vanuatu, New Caledonia, Samoa and Fiji.

Rainbow Shiner

Uses small, clear rivers in the Alabama, Coosa and Black Warrior drainage systems.

Rainbow Smelt

Eats tiny drifting crustaceans and young fish, including juvenile ciscoes where available.

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Rainbow Trout

Native to cold Pacific-draining streams in North America and Asia, with introduced populations in many other regions.

Rainbow-Golden Trout Hybrid

A rainbow–golden trout cross that combines two western trout lineages.

Rainwater Killifish

Uses freshwater and brackish estuaries, with inland populations in parts of Texas, New Mexico and Mexico.

Randall’s Snapper

A snapper of the eastern Indian Ocean and western Pacific.

Razorback Sucker

A native of southwestern United States rivers and lakes, with historical populations in northwestern Mexico.

Red Bass

An Indian Ocean snapper associated with tropical marine waters.

Red Belly Pacu

Uses flooded forests and floodplains along South American rivers, including both nutrient-rich and nutrient-poor systems.

Red Brotula

Lives along North America’s Pacific coast from Alaska to Baja California.

Red Drum

Ranges along the Atlantic coast from Massachusetts to Florida and around the Gulf of Mexico toward northern Mexico.

Red Emperor

A large marine snapper native to the Indian Ocean and western Pacific.

Red River Pupfish

Found naturally in the Red and Brazos river drainages of Texas and Oklahoma.

Red River Shiner

A shiner native to the Red River system across Arkansas, Oklahoma and Texas.

Red Shiner

Tolerates a broad range of water conditions, including environments that many other small freshwater fish find difficult.

Red Snapper

A reef-associated snapper of the western Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico.

Redband Darter

A freshwater darter with a natural range restricted to Tennessee.

Redband Trout

A native rainbow trout form associated with the Columbia River basin.

Redbelly Tilapia

Feeds mainly on algae and aquatic plants rather than depending entirely on animal prey.

Redbreast Sunfish

Favors rocky or plant-filled pools and the vegetated edges of lakes.

Redbreast Tilapia

Uses dense aquatic vegetation in still water or areas with only a slight current.

Redear Sardine

A schooling sardine ranging from Bermuda and Florida through the Caribbean toward French Guiana.

Redear Sunfish

Often gathers around submerged logs and aquatic vegetation, using these features as cover.

Redeye Bass

Native to the Coosa River system within the larger Mobile basin of the Southeast.

Redeye Chub

A small freshwater chub native to southeastern North America.

Redfin Darter

Occurs in south-central United States waters, including Missouri, Arkansas, Kansas and eastern Oklahoma.

Redfin Needlefish

A western Atlantic needlefish recorded around Cuba, Jamaica, Mexico, Belize, Honduras and Bermuda.

Redfin Pickerel

Favors clear freshwater with thick vegetation and accumulated organic material for cover.

Redfin Shiner

Uses calm, gently sloping streams over sand or gravel, often with some aquatic plants.

Redline Darter

Eats aquatic insect larvae, including midges, blackflies and caddisflies, plus mayfly nymphs and water mites.

Redlip Shiner

Lives in rocky pools of clear headwater streams, creeks and small rivers.

Redlips Darter

Uses bank-side pools where scattered rocks and fallen wood provide shelter.

Redside Dace

Occurs in Great Lakes tributaries and parts of the Ohio and upper Mississippi river drainages.

Redside Shiner

Uses cold lakes, ponds, small streams and quiet river backwaters, often near shallow margins.

Redspot Chub

A freshwater chub associated mainly with the Ozark region of the central United States.

Redspot Darter

Native to Gulf-draining waters between Texas and Alabama.

Redspotted Sunfish

A sunfish native to the south-central United States, with introduced populations beyond its original range.

Redstriped Eartheater

A South American cichlid with introduced populations established in southern Florida and Singapore.

Redtail Chub

A freshwater chub recorded in Kentucky and Tennessee.

Redtail Triggerfish

Uses outer reef habitats and feeds on small animals drifting in the water.

Reef Lizardfish

A marine lizardfish of the Indian and western Pacific oceans, found from shallow reefs into deeper coastal water.

Relict Dace

A desert dace confined to a small number of freshwater habitats in eastern Nevada’s Great Basin.

Relict Darter

Known from a short stretch of Kentucky’s Bayou de Chien, a tributary of the Mississippi River.

Reticulate Goosefish

A western Atlantic anglerfish recorded from North Carolina through the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico toward Suriname.

Reticulate Sculpin

Lives in Pacific-draining waters from Washington’s Puget Sound region south toward the Rogue River system.

Reticulate Spikefish

A spikefish ranging from Bermuda and Florida through the Caribbean toward northern Brazil.

Reticulated Spinefoot

A rabbitfish ranging from India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka toward Taiwan, Micronesia and Fiji.

Rhomboid Mojarra

A coastal mojarra ranging from Florida to southern Brazil, including the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean.

Ribbon Shiner

A freshwater shiner native to eastern and south-central United States waterways.

Riffle Minnow

Uses riffles in warm streams above the fall line in Alabama, Georgia and Tennessee.

Riffle Sculpin

Ranges through Pacific-draining waters from the lower Columbia River region south to California’s Morro Bay.

Ringtail Surgeonfish

A surgeonfish ranging from eastern Africa across the Indo-Pacific toward Hawaii, southern Japan and the Society Islands.

Rio Grande Chub

Occurs in New Mexico waterways including Coyote Creek and the Mora and Sapello rivers.

Rio Grande Cichlid

Native to the lower Rio Grande near Brownsville, Texas, and neighboring northeastern Mexico.

Rio Grande Darter

A darter native to the lower Rio Grande drainage on both sides of the United States–Mexico border.

Rio Grande Longear Sunfish

A sunfish associated with the Rio Grande region, including northern Mexican river systems.

Rio Grande Shiner

A shiner with native populations in the Rio Grande region of Mexico and the United States.

Rio Grande Silvery Minnow

A Rio Grande minnow that now occupies only a small fraction of its former river habitat.

Rio Grande Sucker

Uses middle-elevation streams and rivers, from relatively small channels to larger waterways.

River Cardinalfish

A cardinalfish ranging from the Andaman Sea toward Fiji, southern Japan and northeastern Australia.

River Carpsucker

Favors large rivers and reservoirs with gentle currents over sand or silt.

River Chub

Uses clear creeks and rivers with moderate to swift flow over rock and gravel.

River Darter

Lives in river channels and riffles over mixtures of sand, gravel and rock.

River Lamprey

Ranges along the Pacific side of North America from southeastern Alaska to California’s Sacramento–San Joaquin drainage.

River Redhorse

Usually lives in clear, large creeks and rivers, with some populations also using lakes.

River Shiner

A freshwater shiner recorded in both Canada and the United States.

Riverweed Darter

Native to the upper Roanoke River drainage in Virginia and North Carolina.

Roanoke Bass

A bass native only to river systems in Virginia and North Carolina.

Roanoke Darter

Eats insect larvae and other small invertebrates. Spawning typically occurs in late May and June.

Roanoke Hog Sucker

Lives in the upper and middle Roanoke River basin of Virginia and North Carolina.

Roanoke Logperch

Favors warm, clear streams with clean gravel and rubble, using pools, runs and riffles.

Robbermask Cardinalfish

An Indo-Pacific cardinalfish found from Mozambique and western Indian Ocean islands toward Samoa, Tonga and the Ryukyu Islands.

Robbermask Goby

A goby native to Palau that migrates between marine and freshwater habitats.

Robust Redhorse

A large redhorse associated with freshwater rivers of the eastern United States.

Rock Bass

Favors clear pools and lake edges with rock and aquatic vegetation.

Rock Darter

Native to the Mobile Bay drainage in the southeastern United States.

Rock Flagtail

Eats insects, crustaceans and small fish, and also takes fruit such as figs that falls into the water.

Rockcut Goby

A coastal goby recorded from southern Florida and the Bahamas toward Venezuela, including Caribbean and southern Gulf waters.

Rocky Mountain Sculpin

A stream-bottom fish found in western Montana and neighboring Rocky Mountain regions, where mottled coloring blends with rocks.

Roosterfish

Uses warm, shallow eastern Pacific waters from Baja California south toward Peru.

Rosefin Shiner

Found in freshwater creeks and rivers of Virginia, North Carolina and West Virginia.

Rosy Barb

A subtropical barb that uses both lakes and faster-flowing waterways.

Rosy Goatfish

A goatfish ranging from western Indian Ocean islands through the Pacific toward Hawaii, the Marquesas and Tonga.

Rosy Snapper

A snapper ranging across the Indian Ocean and Pacific waters as far east as Hawaii and Tahiti.

Rosyface Chub

A southeastern chub native to North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia.

Rosyface Shiner

A small shiner native to eastern North America’s freshwater systems.

Rosyside Dace

Occurs in eastern and southeastern drainages, including the Delaware, Savannah and Ohio river systems.

Rough Shiner

Found in upper Coastal Plain and Piedmont freshwater habitats in the United States.

Rough Silverside

A coastal silverside ranging from New York toward Martinique, with populations around the Gulf of Mexico.

Rough Triggerfish

A triggerfish with a broad distribution in tropical and subtropical oceans.

Roughhead Shiner

Native only to the upper James River drainage in Virginia.

Round Goby

Originally from central Eurasia, including the Black Sea and Caspian Sea regions.

Round Herring

A northwestern Atlantic herring ranging from the Bay of Fundy toward Florida and the Gulf of Mexico.

Round Sardinella

A schooling sardine found on both sides of the Atlantic and in the Mediterranean Sea.

Round Whitefish

A northern whitefish found in North American drainages from Alaska to New England.

Roundnose Minnow

A southwestern minnow native to Texas, New Mexico and several northern Mexican states.

Roundtail Chub

Native to the Colorado River basin, including the Gila River and connected tributaries.

Ruby Snapper

Ranges from the Red Sea and eastern Africa across the Indian Ocean into the Pacific.

Ruffe

A Eurasian freshwater fish recorded from Britain and Scandinavia east into Arctic-draining Siberian waters.

Rush Darter

Shelters around the roots of aquatic plants in clear, shallow water.

Russetfin Topminnow

Uses coastal-plain streams in Florida, Georgia and Alabama.

Rusty Flounder

A western North Atlantic flatfish harvested by North American commercial fisheries.

Rusty Smalltooth Jobfish

An Indo-Pacific jobfish associated with tropical marine environments.

Rustyside Sucker

A sucker whose native range is limited to Virginia and North Carolina.