Cyprinidae
Deccan white carp
Gymnostomus fulungee
FISH SPECIES
Freshwater Fish
Freshwater fish spend all or part of their lives in rivers, lakes, streams and wetlands. The label describes an environment, not one branch of the fish family tree, so freshwater species include many unrelated shapes and lineages.
FISH ATLAS / FIELD GUIDEFreshwater FishIN THIS CHAPTER01 / Characteristics02 / Lifestyle03 / Species04 / Field notes
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01 / NATURAL HISTORY
Characteristics
Freshwater habitats contain far less salt than seawater and can change quickly with seasons, floods and drought. Fish living there use many different strategies, from streamlined bodies for current to barbels that help find food near the bottom.
- 01River fish
- 02Lake fish
- 03Stream fish
02 / LIFESTYLE
Lifestyle
Life in freshwater follows the movement of water and food. Some fish hold position in a current and intercept drifting prey; others search plants or sediment for a meal. Changes in flow and water level can open feeding grounds or trigger movements toward spawning areas. These behaviors reflect how fish balance hydrodynamic energy expenditure against food intake.
OBSERVATION INDEX
- Holding position in a current
- Feeding among plants or sediment
- Movement with changing water levels
03 / SPECIES
Representative species
Discover representative species illustrating the ecological diversity, morphologies and adaptations of this group.
Deccan white carp
Cichlidae
deep angelfish
Pterophyllum altum
Atherinidae
Deep hardyhead
Craterocephalus cuneiceps
Salmonidae
Deepwater cisco
Coregonus johannae
Cichlidae
Deepwater Hap
Placidochromis electra
Cottidae
deepwater sculpin
Myoxocephalus thompsonii
Callichthyidae
Deer faced cory
Corydoras cervinus
Balitoridae
Dehou heterocercal stone loach
Balitora dehouensis
Pseudomugilidae
delicate blue-eye
Pseudomugil tenellus
Cobitidae
delicate loach
Niwaella delicata
Poeciliidae
Delicate Swordtail
Xiphophorus cortezi
Nothobranchiidae
Delta killi
Fundulopanchax deltaensis
Nemacheilidae
Delvari's loach
Paraschistura delvarii
Cichlidae
Demason's Cichlid
Chindongo demasoni
Cichlidae
Demon eartheater
Satanoperca jurupari
Cyprinidae
Denison barb
Dawkinsia denisonii
Denticipitidae
denticle herring
Denticeps clupeoides
Syngnathidae
Deocata pipefish
Microphis deocata
Cichlidae
Descamp's strange-tooth cichlid
Ectodus descampsii
Cyprinidae
Desert Chub
Gila eremica
Cyprinidae
Desert dace
Eremichthys acros
Gobiidae
Desert goby
Chlamydogobius eremius
Eleotridae
Desert mogurnda
Mogurnda larapintae
Cyprinodontidae
Desert Pupfish
Cyprinodon macularius
04 / FIELD NOTES
A closer look
What makes a fish freshwater?
It is recorded from inland waters with low salinity for all or part of its life cycle.
Are all freshwater fish closely related?
No. Freshwater is a habitat category that includes many separate evolutionary groups.
Can freshwater fish survive in seawater?
Most cannot; without physiological adaptations to excrete excess salt, their cells rapidly lose water through osmosis and dehydrate in hypertonic seawater.