BC Fish Species

British Columbia's sport fish include salmon, trout, char, steelhead, sturgeon, rockfish, lingcod and halibut. Beside these species, there are also dozens other less-known fish species that are found in this region. Below is a list of fish species that you may encounter when fishing in British Columbia.

Common Name Scientific Name Category
American shad Alosa sapidissima Anadromous
Black rockfish Sebastes melanops Saltwater
Brook trout Salvelinus fontinalis Freshwater
Bull trout Salvelinus confluentus Anadromous, freshwater
Cabezone Scorpaenichthys marmoratus Saltwater
Chinook salmon Oncorhynchus tshawytscha Saltwater
Chum salmon Oncorhynchus keta Anadromous
Coastal cutthroat trout Oncorhynchus clarki clarki Anadromous, freshwater
Coho salmon Oncorhyncus kisutch Anadromous
Common carp Cyprinus carpio Freshwater
Copper rockfish Sebastes caurinus Saltwater
Eulachon Thaleichthys pacificus Anadromous
Kokanee Oncorhynchus nerka Freshwater
Largescale sucker Catostomus macrocheilus Freshwater
Mountain whitefish Prosopium williamsoni Freshwater
Northern pikeminnow Ptychocheilus oregonensis Freshwater
Pacific herring Clupea pallasii Saltwater
Pacific staghorn sculpin Leptocottus armatus Saltwater
Peamouth chub Mylcheilus caurinus Freshwater
Pink salmon Oncorhynchus gorbuscha Anadromous
Rainbow trout Oncorhynchus mykiss Freshwater
Shiner perch Cymatogaster aggregata Saltwater
Smallmouth bass Micropterus dolomieui Freshwater
Sockeye salmon Oncorhynchus nerka Anadromous
Starry flounder Platichthys stellatus Saltwater
Steelhead Oncorhynchus mykiss Anadromous
Westslope cutthroat trout Oncorhynchus clarki lewisi Freshwater
White spotted greenling Hexagrammos stelleri Saltwater
White sturgeon Acipenser transmontanus Anadromous, freshwater
Yellow perch Perca flavescens Freshwater