How to Identify Florida Freshwater Fish

Florida fish range from tiny bait fish to massive sailfish, and while it's easy enough to tell a sailfish from a tiny minnow, other species prove harder to identify. Several fish characteristics vary enough from one fish to the next that anyone can learn to differentiate between fish. Florida field guides and state publications can help anglers, divers and collectors learn to tell apart the more prevalent species as well as many of the rarer fish.

Things You'll Need

  • Measuring tape
  • Camera
  • Florida freshwater fish guide
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Instructions

    • 1

      Make note of any color or patterns on the fish. Many fish, such as the largemouth bass, have a distinctive stripe going down the middle of its sides.

    • 2

      Make note of any unusual physical features, such as suckers or whiskers. The appropriately named flathead catfish has an almost neanderthal quality to its sloping head, making it an easy identifier.

    • 3

      Measure a fish. If you've caught the fish, measure it from mouth to tail, around the widest part of its body, and from dorsal fin to tail.

    • 4

      Take a photo of the fish. If you haven't caught the fish, try to take a photo with something in the frame that will give you an idea of the fish's relative size.

    • 5

      Consult the paper field guide or use an online fish finder tool. Audubon or the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission are trustworthy sources. Match the fish you caught or want to identify with the fish displayed in the field guide.