Family: Amiidae, Bowfins view all from this family
Description To 34" (86 cm); 21 1/2 lbs (9.8 kg). Long, moderately robust, head massive; dark olive-green above with lighter color on sides, often producing netlike pattern; cream to greenish-yellow below. Nostrils tubular; maxilla extends beyond eye; jaws with numerous teeth. Fins dark olive to greenish; pectoral and pelvic fins small, rounded; dorsal fin single, long, 42-53 rays; 9-12 anal fin rays; caudal fin rounded, upper base in males has dark spot and yellow to orange halo. Lateral line complete.
Habitat Quiet, usually clear waters of low gradient, sluggish streams, swamps, and oxbow lakes with vegetation.
Range Lake Champlain, St. Lawrence River west through Great Lakes; Mississippi River system, Minnesota to Texas; Long Island; Coastal Plain, S. Pennsylvania to Florida, west to Texas.
Discussion The Bowfin, also called mudfish, dogfish, and grinnel, is often thought of as a pest since it consumes the same food items as game fishes. It spawns in early spring in shallow waters where the male clears vegetation and excavates a shallow nest. After spawning, the male protects the eggs until they hatch and guards the young for several weeks. The Bowfin is one of the hardiest of North America freshwater fishes.
