operculum_ben
operculum_ben
Joined: Sep 18, 2020 Last Active: Sep 28, 2023 iNaturalist Monthly Supporter since November 2022
Bio
I grew up fishing for walleye and muskie in Michigan but now primarily focus on catching new species wherever and whenever possible. I started lifelisting and microfishing in 2021, and my current list is available here. I upload a majority of what I catch to this site, generally posting 1 representative species from each spot I fish. I like to use iNaturalist to scope out potential microfishing spots, and therefore I keep all my coordinates public so others can do the same.
In my free time I identify fish in North America, with an emphasis on Salmonines and fish in regions I've lived. Feel free to contact me with ID questions and comments, as I will try to correct any ID mistakes I've made.
I have occasionally changed my username and display name and I apologize if this causes confusion. I prefer to minimize my online presence, especially because iNaturalist relies on location-based data.
How do I find fishing spots for new species?
Many traditional fishery surveys (1, 2) might report non-game or microfish, but they are not the best source of information. Aside from using iNaturalist, there are many alternative options for finding new species.
Literature - many states have some sort of "fish bible" that contains well-documented information for all fish species in a state. These can be fairly useful for tracking down watersheds with new species. If you can track down the original sources of the surveys, that can help hone in the location even further.
FishNet2 - this site contains archived museum specimens that were collected during ichthyological studies. It is very useful for microfish, albeit it isn't the most complete source of information. The search engine also allows you to draw a polygon and extract files (.kml) for viewing in Google Earth Pro, which is a huge plus.
FishMap - I don't use this site as much as iNaturalist or FishNet2, but it also contains some records / observations that might not be on either of the two aforementioned sites. Note that it compiles observations from a variety of sources.
USGS NAS - by querying the state of interest, some weird nonnative fish hotspots can be found using this site. Note that some of the records are old or questionable; always look for the "established" populations are generally those are fishable.
Custom queries I use
Great Lakes States fishes ID
Species Finder - credit to @hydrophilus
Random projects I like
Sugar Robbers - hummingbird feeder observations.
East Palestine Ohio Fish Kill - observations of fauna impacted by the Norfolk Southern Disaster.
Camera Traps - observations from trail cams.
Animal Architecture - things that are built by fauna.
Squirrels Eating Stuff - quality content.
