Fish at the Outdoor Discovery Center Nature Preserve
This guide includes the most common fish species you may catch at the ODC Nature Preserve.
There are also hybrid sunfishes in these ponds. These are crosses of (most commonly) Bluegill x Green Sunfish or Pumpkinseed Sunfish x Green Sunfish. Please indicate the most similar sunfish ...more ↓
Pumpkinseed Sunfish
The pumpkinseed sunfish (Lepomis gibbosus) is a freshwater fish of the sunfish family (Centrarchidae) of order Perciformes. It is also referred to as "pond perch", "common sunfish", "punkys","sunfish" and "sunny".
Bluegill
The bluegill (Lepomis macrochirus) is a species of freshwater fish sometimes referred to as bream, brim, or copper nose. It is a member of the sunfish family Centrarchidae of the order Perciformes. Lepomis, in Greek, means "scaled gill cover" and macrochirus means large hand, which may be a reference to its body shape. A defining characteristic of the bluegill is ...more ↓
green sunfish
The green sunfish (Lepomis cyanellus) is a species of freshwater fish in the sunfish family (family Centrarchidae) of order Perciformes. A panfish popular with anglers, the green sunfish is also kept as an aquarium fish by hobbyists. They are usually caught by accident, while fishing for other game fish. Green sunfish can be caught with live bait such as nightcrawlers, waxworms, ...more ↓
Largemouth Bass
The largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides) is a freshwater gamefish in the sunfish family, a species of black bass native to North America. It is also known by a variety of regional names, such as the brown bass, widemouth bass, bigmouth bass, black bass, bucketmouth, Potter's fish, Florida bass, Florida largemouth, green bass, green trout, gilsdorf bass, linesides, Oswego ...more ↓
Smallmouth Bass
The smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu) is a species of freshwater fish in the sunfish family (Centrarchidae) of the order Perciformes. It is the type species of its genus. One of the black basses, it is a popular game fish sought by anglers throughout the temperate zones of North America, and has been spread by stock to many cool-water tributaries and lakes in Canada and ...more ↓
Channel Catfish
Channel catfish, Ictalurus punctatus, is North America's most numerous catfish species. It is the official fish of Missouri, Iowa, Nebraska, Kansas, and Tennessee, and is informally referred to as a "channel cat". In the United States, they are the most fished catfish species with approximately 8 million anglers targeting them per year. The popularity of channel catfish ...more ↓
Brown Bullhead Catfish
The brown bullhead, Ameiurus nebulosus, is a fish of the Ictaluridae family that is widely distributed in North America. It is a species of bullhead catfish and is similar to the black bullhead (Ameiurus melas) and yellow bullhead (Ameiurus natalis). It was originally described as Pimelodus nebulosus by Charles Alexandre Lesueur in 1819, and is also referred ...more ↓
Golden shiner
The golden shiner (Notemigonus crysoleucas) is a cyprinid fish native to eastern North America. It is the sole member of its genus. Much used as a bait fish, it is probably the most widely pond-cultured fish in the United States. It can be found in Quebec and its French name is "Mené jaune" or "Chatte de l'Est".
Black Bullhead
The black bullhead (Ameiurus melas) is a species of bullhead catfish. Like other bullhead catfish, it has the ability to thrive in waters that are low in oxygen, brackish, turbid and/or very warm. It also has barbels located near its mouth, a broad head, spiny fins and no scales. It can be identified from other bullheads as the barbels are black, and it has a tan crescent around ...more ↓
