Michigan species commonly
mistaken as a snakehead fish

Mudpuppy
Mudpuppies are large, permanently aquatic salamanders with flattened tails and reddish gills behind their heads. Body color is brown or gray-brown with darker, scattered blotches. This harmless creature is found state wide and has declined in population size. They are often destroyed by people who catch them while fishing. Click here for more information on Mudpuppies.

Bowfin
The most easily recognizable characteristic of the Bowfin is the black spot at the base of the tail. It is generally tan and olive in appearance and its maximum length can reach 32 inches. The Bowfin has an air bladder as a lung, which is not found in most fish. While the snakefish has an extended anal fin, the bowfin's are short. Bowfin habitat is in open marshes and along rivers and lakes.

Burbot
This Michigan native reaches about 15 inches in length. It is yellow, light brown, or tan, becoming darker northward; the background color is overlaid by a lacelike pattern of dark brown or black. In many inland lakes the color may be uniformly dark brown or black. Its characteristic barbel on the lower jaw and split dorsal fin separate this species from the Snakehead.

Longnose Gar
This ferocious looking fish is native only to North America's fresh and brackish waters. It can grow up to 6 feet, and is distinguished by a long snout with nostrils at the tip. Teeth are very abundant throughout the snout. Adults are usually soft olive to dark green on the back and upper sides, lateral surfaces are pale green or silver with white below.