In Florida there are well over 200 native species of freshwater fish representing twenty-five families. Over 95 percent of the species are members of six families: Cyprinidae (minnows), Centrarchidae (sunfish and bass), Ictaluridae (catfish), Catostomidae (suckers), Cyprinidontidae (killifish), and Percidae (darters). These species range in size from less than an inch to four or five feet.
Much of the observed speciesÊdiversity can be attributed to the wide variety of freshwater habitats present in the state. Because of the relatively short time fish have had to colonize the new lakes and streams that remained after the last sea level decline, far fewer species of freshwater fish are found south of the Suwannee River than in the northern and western portions of the state.
Saltwater species have not been included although large numbers of them regularly invade Florida's fresh waters. Florida also has approximately eighteen species of established exotic freshwater fish, which are not depicted either. These fish are becoming an increasingly serious problem, particularly in the southern part of the state, where they are successfully competing with native species.
