Slender, very shiny torpedo-like silver fish with large eyes, clear fins and a forked tail.

Lake whitefish

Coregonus clupeaformis
Where at Shedd?
At Home on the Great Lakes
Diet Aquatic larvae, mollusks and very small crustaceans (amphipods); also other fishes and fish eggs
Size Length: Up to 3.2 feet (100 cm); common length 21.3 inches (54.1 cm)
Type Fishes
Range North America
Habitat Lakes, rivers and brackish waters from Alaska and northwestern Canada to southern Canada and northern United States

Did you know?

  1. Lake whitefish swim in deep waters and move into shallows for spawning.
  2. The lake whitefish is a survivor, but several other whitefish species became extinct due to overfishing, habitat loss and attacks by sea lampreys.
  3. The lake whitefish at Shedd were raised and donated from the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians' Fisheries Enhancement Facility, a tribal-run hatchery in northern Michigan.


IUCN Red List Conservation Status