Fish Facts

Fish Slime!

Fish are slimey for a reason. A slippery coating protects the fish against parasites and fungus. It keeps bodily fluids in and fresh water out. It reduces the friction for better swimming, and makes a fish slick and harder for predators to catch.

Favorite Freshwater Fish Foods

Catfish and Carp- Bread

Perch and Sunfish- Stinky cheese chunks

Chub and Catfish-Hot dogs and leftover lunchmeats

Largemouth Bass-Minnows and Night Crawlers

Smallmouth Bass-Crickets

Fish and Sleeping

Most fish never sleep.

The reason fish dont have eylids

Fish don’t have eyelids because their eyes are being constantly washed with water.

Species of Fish

There are more than 21,000 species of fish.

Goldfish and Sturgeon

Goldfish can live for 10 to 25 years. Lake Sturgeon can live for up to 80 years.

Fishing Birds

In Taiwan and Japan, some fisherman use waterbirds called cormorants to catch small trout. The fisherman capture the bird and tie a line to its foot and a leather collar around its neck. The bird then flies off and catches a fish, but it is unable to swallow it because of the leather collar around i’s neck.The fisherman pulls in the bird with the line tied to its foot and takes the fish from its mouth.

Chances of being eaten by a shark

Your chances of being eaten by a shark are 1 in 300 million(Your chances of being killed by a bee sting are 1 in 6 million).

Baby Salmon

Baby Salmon travel downstream tail first.

Fish Antifreeze

Fish that live in the Antarctic have a special “antifreeze” chemical in their system that keeps the water in their bodies from freezing.

Look Again

Most fish are dark colored on top and light underneath. Looking up, a hungry predator sees bright sunlight, so a fish with a light colored belly will blend in with the sunlight.Looking down, the predator sees darkness, so a fish with a dark back is camouflaged against the murky depths.

Cartilage Skeletons

Sharks, rays, and skates have no bones. Their skeletons are made out of cartilage-the same substance that forms your ears and the end of your nose.

Scale sizes

All fish have scale, but some scales, like those of a tuna, are so small they are almost invisible.

Lateral Lines

Fish have a line of sensors called a lateral line along each side of their bodies. The lateral lines help them to detect vibrations in the water.

Tough Scales

The scales of a gar are so tough that Native Americans used them as arrowheads. Pioneer farmers covered their wooden plows with gar hides.

Fastest Fish

The fastest fish is the marlin which can swim 50 miles per hour.

Thats a lot of tastebuds!

Some catfish have tastebuds all over their bodies. A few can taste with their tails.

The Scales of Age

You can tell how old a fish is by looking at its scales. When a fish is born, it has all of its scales. As the fish grows, so do its scales. Each individual fish scale has a set of growth rings, and each ring equals one year. Count the rings and find out how old your fish is.

Noisy Fish

Some fish are noisy creatures. They squeak, grunt and squeal. Some grind their teeth to make noise, others rub the bones of their spine together. A few fish even get their names by the sounds they make when caught. This is how grunts and croakers got their names.

I give credit to the book Kid’s Incredible Fishing Stories by Shaun Morey for supplying me with these facts.(More facts will be added later).