Fish

Sleeping Bear Dunes is located on Lake Michigan’s shoreline and contains countless smaller lakes and streams! These vital water resources are home to over 90 native fish species, which most visitors never get to see. The native fish here are quite diverse and they all live very interesting lives.

Aquatic animals like fish have been facing some very tough challenges recently. Unfortunately, native fish across the Great Lakes region are a shadow of what they once were. Issues like chemical pollution, overfishing, and invasive species become more complex every year. Some fish species can adapt to these changes, but others are so specialized that conservation is their only hope for survival. Learn about how you can help native fish populations and protect these resources for future generations.

 

 

Large Fish

 

An adult lake sturgeon being handled by USFWS staff

USFWS Photo

Lake Sturgeon (Huso fulvescens)

The largest fish native to Sleeping Bear Dunes is the mighty lake sturgeon. These unique gray fish grow to 8 feet long and can weigh over 300 pounds. Lake sturgeon can live for over 100 years, which makes them some of the oldest fish here. They have a shovel-like snout that they use to dig in the mud for mollusks and crustaceans. Sturgeon populations are a fraction of what they used to be due to overfishing, habitat loss, and invasive species. These fish are now protected and there are many conservation efforts to grow their populations.

 

School of lake trout patrolling a rocky stream bed

USFWS Photo

Lake Trout (Salvelinus namaycush)

One of Lake Michigan’s top predators is the lake trout. These fish have olive green skin with white spots and grow to over 3 feet long. Adult trout mainly eat other fish but can also feed on birds, mammals, crustaceans, and insects. Larval lake trout feed on plankton and crustaceans. These fish prefer to live in deep, cold water but will return to streams to spawn. Lake trout declined after the sea lampreys invaded Lake Michigan, though they may be on the rise again. This species is commonly caught by anglers and served in restaurants.

 

Scientific illustration of an adult lake whitefish

NPS Image

Lake Whitefish (Coregonus clupeaformis)

The most iconic and culturally important fish in Lake Michigan is the lake whitefish. These fish grow to around 2 feet long and have shiny silver scales. They feed on mollusks, insects, and plankton during various life stages. Humans value whitefish for their mild flavored meat. Whitefish might be the most consumed Lake Michigan fish. Invasive sea lampreys and invasive mussels attack and steal food from whitefish. Their numbers have been in decline but there may be signs of rebound.

 

A small brown bullhead sitting in an observation tank

NPS Photo

Brown Bullhead (Ameiurus nebulosus)

The brown bullhead is a species of catfish commonly found in the lakes and rivers of Sleeping Bear Dunes. They have brownish-green skin with no scales, and they usually weigh around 2 pounds. Like other catfish, brown bullheads have whisker-like barbels around their mouths. These barbels are used to detect worms, crustaceans, and other small prey in the mud. This species can survive in places with poor water quality and can even absorb oxygen from the air! They survive winter by hibernating in the mud.

 

Small Fish

 

A juvenile yellow perch sitting in an observation tank

NPS Photo

Yellow Perch (Perca flavescens)

Yellow perch are an interesting species because of how important they are for the ecosystem. They have golden skin with multiple vertical stripes, and most grow to around 3 pounds. They play a vital role in the aquatic food web as they are the main prey of large predator fish and diving birds. Young perch eat microorganisms while adult perch eat insects, crustaceans, and smaller fish. A high yellow perch population can indicate that a body of water has good health. In Michigan, most of the fish taken by anglers are perch.

 

An adult bluntnose minnow sitting in an observation tank

NPS Photo

Bluntnose Minnow (Pimephales notatus)

The most common small fish to find in streams and lakes at Sleeping Bear Dunes is the bluntnose minnow. This species grows to around 3 inches long. They have silver scales with a black lateral line and a black tail spot. Bluntnose minnows eat algae, plankton, crustaceans, and small insects. They have round heads which may help them maneuver in the water to catch prey. Males dig out sheltered nests in the gravel and guard any eggs that are laid in them.

 

Count the dorsal spines, this fish is true to its name

USGS Photo / K. Schmidt

Ninespine Stickleback (Pungitius pungitius)

One of the strangest looking fish at Sleeping Bear Dunes is the ninespine stickleback. These fish have green-gray skin that helps them blend into lakebeds and streambanks. They grow to around 2 inches and can have 8-12 dorsal spines, despite their name. These spines make it much harder for small predators to swallow sticklebacks. Larger predators, like wading birds and mammals, are not deterred by these defenses. Ninespine sticklebacks are very adaptable and can even live in saltwater.

 

Deepwater sculpin looking unhappy in a researcher's hand

USFWS Photo

Deepwater Sculpin (Myoxocephalus thompsonii)

As their name implies, these fish can only be found in very deep water. At Sleeping Bear Dunes, deepwater sculpins can only rarely be found on the bottom of Lake Michigan. They grow to less than three inches long, and they have scaleless brown skin. Sculpins feed on small crustaceans or plankton, and they are a key prey fish for lake trout. These fish are an indicator species, which means their health reflects the health of the lake. Unfortunately, challenges like pollution and invasive species have reduced sculpin numbers.

 

Non-native Fish

 

Horrified visitors point at the unpleasant mouth of a sea lamprey

NPS Photo / C. Risko

Sea Lamprey (Petromyzon marinus)

Of all the invasive species at Sleeping Bear Dunes, the sea lamprey is the most likely to cause nightmares. Lampreys are finless, jawless parasitic fish. They have green or brown skin, and they can grow to several feet long. They have a suction cup mouth and rings of sharp teeth that are used to chew large holes into host fish. They invaded the Great Lakes through shipping canals over 100 years ago. The invading sea lampreys quickly killed off many aquatic predators like lake trout and whitefish.

 

A school of alewives swimming in shallow water

USFWS Photo / R. Hagerty

Alewife (Alosa pseudoharengus)

Many visitors know about alewives because they sometimes wash up dead by the millions on Lake Michigan beaches. They grow to over 12 inches long and have silver scales. These fish are from the Atlantic Ocean and invaded the Great Lakes through shipping canals. Alewives eat all sorts of plankton, which is the main food source of many larval fish in Lake Michigan. They invaded right after the sea lampreys killed off the large predator fish, so the alewife population grew rapidly.

 

Two coho salmon in spawning coloration swimming in a stream

USFWS Photo / R. Tabor

Salmon (Salmonidae family)

Several salmon species have been artificially stocked in Lake Michigan for many decades. This program began as an effort to control the invasive alewives, but now they are stocked more for sport fishing. Salmon are not native to Lake Michigan or its tributaries, but their fisheries are vital to the regional economy. Chinook and coho salmon are the most commonly caught salmon near Sleeping Bear Dunes. In early fall, they return in large groups to streams like the Platte River to spawn.

 

An invasive goby sitting atop a pile of invasive mussels

USFWS Photo / E. Engbretson

Round Goby (Neogobius melanostomus)

Round gobies were introduced to the Great Lakes in the ballast water of cargo ships. They usually grow to around 6 inches long and have gray or green skin. Gobies feed on crustaceans, worms, fish eggs, and even invasive mussels. Round gobies are now a part of the lake food web, but that is not a good thing. Native predators have learned how to eat them, but the gobies eat their eggs before they can even hatch. The invasive mussels accumulate toxins in their tissue, which are absorbed by the gobies and anything that eats them.

 

Full Fish List

The fish described above are only a small selection of what can be found at Sleeping Bear Dunes. Use the tool below to generate a list of all fish species found in the Lakeshore. Select "fish" as the species category. A checklist will include all fish species that are confirmed to live in the park. A full list will include all confirmed fish species as well as false reports and locally extinct species.

 

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Species Attribute Definitions

Definitions

Occurrence

Occurrence values are defined below. One or more Occurrence Tags may be associated with each Occurrence value.

Present: Species occurs in park; current, reliable evidence available.

Probably Present: High confidence species occurs in park but current, verified evidence needed.

Unconfirmed: Species is attributed to park but evidence is weak or absent.

Not In Park: Species is not known to occur in park.

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Occurrence Tags

Adjacent: Species is known to occur in areas near to or contiguous with park boundaries.

False Report: Species was reported to occur within the park, but current evidence indicates the report was based on misidentification, a taxonomic concept no longer accepted, or other similar problem of error or interpretation.

Historical: Species' historical occurrence in park is documented. Assigned based on judgment as opposed to determination based on age of the most recent evidence.

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Abundance

Abundant:

• Animals: May be seen daily, in suitable habitat and season, and counted in relatively large numbers.
• Plants: Large number of individuals; wide ecological amplitude or occurring in habitats covering a large portion of the park.

Common:

• Animals: May be seen daily, in suitable habitat and season, but not in large numbers.
• Plants: Large numbers of individuals predictably occurring in commonly encountered habitats but not those covering a large portion of the park.

Uncommon:

• Animals: Likely to be seen monthly in appropriate habitat and season. May be locally common.
• Plants: Few to moderate numbers of individuals; occurring either sporadically in commonly encountered habitats or in uncommon habitats.

Rare:

• Animals: Present, but usually seen only a few times each year.
• Plants: Few individuals, usually restricted to small areas of rare habitat.

Occasional:

• Animals: Occurs in the park at least once every few years, varying in numbers, but not necessarily every year.
• Plants: Abundance variable from year to year (e.g., desert plants).

Unknown: Abundance unknown

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Nativeness

Native: Species naturally occurs in park or region.

Non-native: Species occurs on park lands as a result of deliberate or accidental human activities.

Unknown: Nativeness status is unknown or ambiguous.

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List Differences

The Checklist contains only those species that are designated as "present" or "probably present" in the park.

The Full List includes all the checklist species in addition to species that are unconfirmed, historically detected, or incorrectly reported as being found in the park. The full list also contains species that are "in review" because their status in the park hasn't been fully determined. Additional details about the status of each species is included in the full list.

The checklist will almost always contain fewer species than the full list.

Select a Park:

Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore

Select a Species Category (optional):

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Species attribute definitions

Search results will be displayed here.

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