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HOW TO IDENTIFY CATFISH SPECIES

Catfish Species: Blue Catfish:

• Blue catfish tend to be light bluish gray bordering on white.
• They are larger on average (max. over 100 lbs)
• Blue catfish have straight edged anal fins
• Anal fin has 30-36 spines or rays in the anal fin.
• The upper jaw of a blue catfish sticks out well beyond the lower jaw.
• Blue catfish have a forked tail.
• Blue catfish tends to have a hump behind its head.

Blue catfish’s range includes the Deep South along the Mississippi, Missouri and Ohio River tributaries but they have been widely introduced in the major rivers along the east coast and in various pockets across the west.

Catfish Species: Channel Catfish:

• Channel catfish tend to be varying shades of brown or yellow, (Young channels have light spots).
• Channel Catfish max out at about 40 lbs.
• The anal fins of Channel Catfish have rounded edges.
• The Channel Catfish have 24-29 spines or rays on the anal fin.
• The jaws of the Channel Catfish tend to be even with each other.
• The Channel Catfish has a forked tail.

Channel catfish are widely distributed from east coast to the western Rockies. Southern Canada to Northern Mexico. They are also stocked in some parts of California.

Catfish Species: Flathead Catfish:

• Flatheads are dark in color, but usually more yellowish than channel catfish.
• The max size of a flathead catfish is over 100 pounds.
• The anal fin of flathead catfish are rounded on the edge, but shorter in proportional length than a channel catfish.
• Baby flathead catfish have a separated edge on the front of their pectoral spines.
• The anal fin of a flathead catfish contain less than 30 rays.
• The lower jaws of flathead catfish stick out farther than the upper jaw.
• The heads of flatheads are flat and wide with a large dimple at the base of the skull like the back side of a round shovel.
• Flatheads have rounded tails not forked tails.

You can find flatheads in the Mississippi, Missouri and Ohio rivers and their tributaries plus Texas and New Mexico. They have also been introduced in many rivers along the East Coast  and stocked in a few locations in the West.

Catfish Species: White Catfish:

• White Catfish are light bluish gray or creamy in color.
• They are small, a record White Catfish is 20lb.
• White catfish have a rounded anal fin.
• Their anal fin has 19-23 rays.
• The tail of a white catfish is a forked but less than blue catfish.
• The body of a white catfish is short and stubby like a bullhead.

The White Catfish is native to the coastal rivers along east coast and Gulf of Mexico but has been introduced in some limited locations across the US.

Catfish Species: Black Bullheads:

• Black Bullhead Catfish is small, a max of 6 pounds.
• The bullhead has a slightly humped back and large head for its stumpy body.
• Black bull heads have rounded anal fin with 17-21 rays.
• The anal fins base is light grey.
• The tail is squared rather than forked or rounded.
• The tail of the black bullhead has a light bar along the base.
• The Black bullhead catfish’s jaws are even (no protruding upper or lower jaw)
• The pectoral fins’ spines are smooth.
• The color of the black bullhead is…black or dark brown.

The Black Bullhead’s range is very similar to that of the flathead catfish’s native range covering from Texas to the Canada from the Rockies to the Appalachian mountains.

Catfish Species: Brown Bullheads:

• Brown Bullhead Catfish is small, a max of 6 pounds.
• The bullhead has a slightly humped back
• brown bull heads have rounded anal fin with 21-24 rays.
• The tail is squared rather than forked or rounded.
• The bullhead catfish’s jaws are even (no protruding upper or lower jaw)
• The pectoral fins’ spines are serrated.
• The color of the brown bullhead is…brown and spotted.

The brown bullhead’s range includes the Mississippi River, the Missouri River and everything east of that from Florida to Southern Canada.

Catfish Species: Yellow Bullheads:

• Yellow Bullhead Catfish is one of the smallest of the catfish species, usually less than 5 pounds.
• The bullhead has a slightly humped back
• Yellow bull heads have rounded anal fin with 23-27 rays.
• The tail is rounded rather than forked or square.
• The color of the yellow bullhead is…yellowish brown.
• The whiskers of the yellow bullhead are white.

The yellow catfish’s range covers from the Great Lakes to the Gulf Coast, from the Midwest to the East Coast.

Catfish Species: Wels Catfish

• Wels catfish are some of the largest in the world. The world record currently being 297 lbs from the Po River in Italy.
• Wels catfish are found in Europe and the UK. The largest specimens being in Spain, Italy and Southern France.
• Wels catfish have long eel like bodies with an anal fin that runs most the length of their tail and body.

Other Species of Catfish from Around the World: