Paddlefish Animal Pictures

© Natalia Belay/Shutterstock.com

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Chinese paddlefish swims with open mouth. — © Natalia Belay/Shutterstock.com

Over-fishing played a large role in the demise of this fish.

The American paddlefish (Polyodon spathula) — © Marina Veder/Shutterstock.com

By USFWS - https://digitalmedia.fws.gov/, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=89547873 native fish of indiana USFWS, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Paddlefish_01.jpg

Paddlefish, native fish of Indiana — © USFWS, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons — License (Original)

The Mississippi Paddlefish — © Saran Jantraurai/Shutterstock.com

By USFWS Mountain-Prairie - Paddlefish fingerling, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=87173975 USFWS Mountain-Prairie, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons Paddlefish typically reach 6" in length during the middle of the summer. They are usually around 10" when released in early September. Gavins Point National Fish Hatchery, Yankton SD. Photo: Sam Stukel - USFWS https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Paddlefish_fingerling_%2848727348901%29.jpg

Juvenile Paddlefish being released — © USFWS Mountain-Prairie, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons — License (Original)

Paddlefish on white background — © Oleksandr Lytvynenko/Shutterstock.com

American Paddlefish are classified as a primitive fish species, which means that they have many physical characteristics in common with the earliest fish.

American Paddlefish swimming in a stream — © Saran Jantraurai/Shutterstock.com

The American Paddlefish is smooth-skinned and almost entirely comprised of cartilage.