Atlantic Spadefish

Spadefish

Chaetodipterus faber

Size: to 36" and 20 lbs.

Habitat: shallow coastal waters

Notes: Spadefishes are not quite as tropical as the others on this page, and typically range to New England. They may form large schools. Babies are uniformly black without stripes.

Spadefish
North Carolina
Herb Segars Photography

Eastern Pickerel

Esox niger

Size
to 39"

Eastern or 'Chain' pickerels are deep olive-green on the back, shading to a creamy yellow on the belly. Olive green blotches are present within distinct black chain-like or interwoven markings on the sides. There is a distinct dark, vertical bar below the eye. The cheek and gill covers are completely covered by scales. The underside of the lower jaw has 14-17 branchiostegal rays. There are no recognized subspecies. However, they hybridize readily with redfin pickerels. They are distantly related to trout and salmon.