By: Brian Bockhahn, Regional Education Specialist, N.C. Division of Parks and Recreation
It is the Year of the Fish in North Carolina State Parks! Programs, festivals, and events throughout the state this year will celebrate this theme. We invite you all to join us at some of these events and Get Hooked on NC State Parks!
Whether you like fishing or just fish-watching, North Carolina State Parks has a lot of waters to explore! From the mountains to the sea, our state parks showcase treasured habitats for fish including mountain streams, lakes, dense, moss-filled swamps, tea-colored meandering rivers, the largest estuary on the east coast and of course 12,331 miles of sound and oceanfront shoreline from which to catch or study fish.
In the cold mountain streams shaded by Rhododendron, you can find our state freshwater fish and North Carolina’s only native trout species—the Brook Trout. Its olive green color and speckled back help camouflage it on river bottoms, but watch for its reddish-orange fin with a white line on the leading edge. Visit Stone Mountain State Park and other mountain parks to explore some of the best cold trout waters in the state.
Throughout the foothills and piedmont anglers try to catch Largemouth Bass, White Bass, Crappie and the abundant Sunfish. You know the fish are biting when you see lines of boats or shoreline fisherman during a “run.” Several free public tournaments are held at Mayo River and Pilot Mountain state parks as well as Falls Lake and Jordan Lake state recreation areas. Fishing programs are also held at many parks throughout the year.
The Carolina Bays have several sport fish to catch. Some smaller endemic fish live in these shallow waters—this means that these fish live nowhere else in the world! Three species occur only at Lake Waccamaw: the “Waccamaw” Silverside, Killifish and Darter. Pettigrew State Park is on Lake Phelps—also a Carolina Bay—and where the Lake Phelps Killifish lives.
Our state saltwater fish is the Red Drum or “Channel Bass” that lives in coastal ocean waters and sounds. The Pamlico Sound is the largest estuary on the east coast, and along with the Albemarle serves as a vital nursery for the Red Drum and other fish. When spawning, males vibrate a muscle in their swim bladder to make a “drumming” sound. Red Drum live long and get large—the world record is a 94 pounder caught right here in North Carolina. Next time you’re paddling at Goose Creek, Jockeys Ridge or Hammocks Beach state parks, think about these large old fish and listen for their “drum.”
We hope you enjoy the Year of The Fish in North Carolina’s state parks. Make sure you check our event calendar and join us for one of many fun fishing programs across the state this year—just search here for “fish”:
https://www.ncparks.gov/find-an-activity/events-and-programs
North Carolina State Parks 