There are thousands of species of edible fish and seafood that live in fresh and salt water. The term seafood applies to anything that is eaten by humans from saline waters. On this page I also encompass those from fresh water. There are over 32000 species of fish, if you include shellfish, molluscs and crustaceans you arrive at a very high number. This is a very abbreviated list of the most common species consumed by humans, bear with me that a lot is not listed. The methods of listing below is very categoric, if you use the word clam it covers thousands of species, remember that please!
Below is a search function for this page where you can find specific terms. If the first match is not correct, press enter to go to the next. If there is no match this page does not contain that term.
A salesman in a Brazilian fishmarket.
Seafood - Common Edible Fish
Anchovy is a small fish. Salted and canned in brine it is consumed all over the world. Native to all seas, prefer temperate waters. There are about 140 species. Anglerfish is a group of fish found all over the world. The name comes from a kind of fleshy rod protuding from the head acting as a lure. Bass are a number of species that are both fresh- and salt water dwelling. Belongs to the family perciformes. Exist in all continents except Antartica. The big brother in the family is the grouper that can weigh over 100 kg. Billfish include the species swordfish, sailfish and marlin, they all have a sword like beak used for hunting. Migratory species that are found in temparate to tropical waters around the world. Bluefish is found in temperate to tropical waters around the world. A popular edible fish. Bream is a group of both fresh- and saltwater dwelling fish. The gilt head bream common in the Mediterranean is the most important for food. The freshwater bluegill is common in North America. Carp include several species. Has been cultivated for thousands of years. Is native to Europe and Asia. Catfish are a number of fresh water species that vary a lot in size. Native to all continents except Antartica. Have been cultivated for hundreds of years. Char is closely related to salmon and trout. Dwell in really cold fresh water. Native to North America, Europe and Asia. One of the culinary most appreciated edible fish.ed Cod is one of our more popular foods. Eaten dried, smoked or fresh. Is a collective name for a number of species found in the Northern Atlantic, the Arctic and the Western Pacific oceans, other than cod you have pollock. The commercial fishing has been concentrated to the Atlantic cod, overfishing has created problems.
Common ling native to the North Atlantic. Large. Common sole native to the Eastern North Atlantic until the Mediterranean. A very popular edible fish, the meat is expensive. Eel are over 800 species found in sweet and salt water all over the world, snake like. Many times the term refer to eels of the species anguillidae that live in sweet water and procreate by migrating to certain salt water areas (like the Sargasso Sea). The biggest species are morays.
A species of Moray Eel.
Flounders are several species of flatfish native to the Northern Atlantic and the Pacific. Haddock is a popular food fish dwelling in the North Atlantic. Halibut is native to the the North Pacific and the North Atlantic. Can weigh up to 300 kg. not the same as flounder although sometimes confused. Herring are various species native to the North Atlantic and the North Pacific. Smoked, salted, fried and pickled it has been an importants staple food.
Hilsa is a salt- and freshwater dwelling species. Only found in Bangladesh and on the Indian sub continent where it is commonly eaten. Lophius are various species native to the coasts off Europe. Strange and sinister looking they are known as monkfish, goosefish and sea devils. In Sweden fishermen would fill them with stones and throw them back in, believing they were bad luck. Today they are priced for their tasty meat. Mackerell is a collective name for number of species, most of them of the "scombridae" family that include bonito and king mackerell. They are found in temperate and tropical seas around the world. Patagonian toothfish is an endangered species. They dwell in temperate to cold southerno oceans in depths down to almost 4000 meters. Perch is a large family containing among many others walleye and pike-perch. They are freshwater dwelling and found around the world. Pike is a number of species found in North America, Europe and Russia. Fresh water dwelling, also found in the brackish Baltic Sea. Plaice are different species of flatfish native to the northern hemisphere. Popular food fish. Salmon are large species of the salmonidae family that migrate between salt and fresh water. The steelhead kind is most common in Europe. Domestic to the Northern hemisphere, also cultivated in Chile and Australia. Sardine or pilchard are several species of small oily fish. Most commonly eaten canned in brine or grilled. Native to all oceans. Snakehead is a group of fresh water dwelling fish. Originally native to Africa and Asia but has spread around the world. Snapper are several species, the most famous being red snapper. Are domestic to tropical and sub tropical waters around the world. Tilapia is a generic term for hundreds of species of sweet water fish with African origins. Have been cultivated for thousands of years and thus have been spread around the world. Only live in warm water. Tilefish is a name for several species, important for commercial fishing. Domestic in temperate waters around the world. Trout are the freshwater dwelling species of the "salmonidae" family. Native to Europe, Asia and North America - although they have been spread to other continents by sport fishing enthusiasts. Tuna are several species of fish belonging to the scombridae family. A very important commercial fish, several species are endangered. Domestic to all oceans, prefer temperate and tropical waters. Have recently started to be bred commercially.
Seafood - Edible Crustaceans
Barnacles are species belonging to the family cirripedia. Clawed lobsters are two saltwater dwelling species only found in the Atlantic north of the equator. Priced for their good taste.
Crabs is a group of several thousand species. Living in salt- or fresh water around the world. Commercially very important. The largest is the Red king crab. Crayfish are several species living in freshwater. Related to true lobster. Carrion eaters. Langust also called spiny lobster or rock lobster is a group of crustaceans related to true lobster. They are found in warm waters in all oceans. Mantis shrimp is not a shrimp but belongs to another family of crustaceans. Found in oceans around the world, live in warm waters. Prawn is a collective name for various species that can be salt- or fresh water dwellers. Found in all oceans, few are commercially fished in Europe where shrimp are dominant. The big tiger prawn and the Atlantic white shrimp are common. The terms shrimp and prawn are used interchangably, biologically there are differences. Many species are cultivated. Shrimp is a collective term for various species. They can live in fresh- or saltwater. Found all over the world. They are farmed in many places. Slipper lobsters are a number of species found in all oceans. Sometimes called "bugs" since they ressemble insects. Squat lobster is the name for a number of species. Found all over the world in salt water.
Seafood - Other
Abalone are large seasnails found in oceans all over the world, they dwell best in cold waters. Most are found off Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Western US and Japan. Is a successfully farmed seafood. Chiton are species of primitive shellfish. Found worldwide in oceans. Traditionally eaten by indigenous people in the Americas. Clam is a very confusing general name that can mean a lot of things. One, that I use, is that they are bivalves that burrow in sediment, which separates them from bivalves that cling to other things or that swim freely (that would be scallops). Cockle a group of clams that belong to the cardiidae family. Found all over the world, very popular food in China. Cuttlefish related to squids and octopuses. Found in salt waters in East and South Asia, Europe, Africa and Australia. Geoduck is a large salt water clam. A fleshy member can protude up to one meter. Native to Northwestern North America. Has become really popular in East Asia, therefor large scale cultivation has started. Mussels are several species of clams that all have an almost oval shape. Brown and blue mussels are common commercial species that are also cultivated. They thrive best in temperate waters, are native to all oceans. Octopus are a group of molluscs that have eight arms. They are quite intelligent and commonly can use ink as a defence mechanism while fleeing. The larger species can have an arm span of over 4 meters and weigh up to 70kg. They are found in all oceans and are readily caught as food.
Oysters are several species belonging to the ostreidae family. Many are eaten by humans, raw or cooked. They are found in salt and semi salt waters in all oceans. They are cultivated on a big scale. Scallops are found in all oceans. They are cultivated. All scallops are migratory which means they don´t burrow themselves but swim around. They are priced food. An interesting specie is the ocean quahog that can live to be over 400 years old! Sea cucumbers are found in all oceans. They are readily eaten and very popular in East Asia. They are cultivated, mainly in China.
A species of sea cucumber.
Sea snails is part of a huge family that include land dwelling species as well. The abalone is the most famous but many others are harvested and eaten throughout the world. Are found in all habitats including oceans and fresh water. Sea urchin belong to a big family called echinoidea. Are found in all oceans and is a popular seafood. Squid belongs to a family called called teuthida, Erranously they are often described as having 10 arms separating them from octopusus, that is only true for some of them, most of them have 8 arms and two long tentacles. They are not as intelligent as octopusus and they don´t have ink bladders. The biggest species are deep sea dwelling and can weigh up to 500 kg. They are found in all oceans.
