Species profile
Cisco
Coregonus artedi
At a glance
Cisco (Coregonus artedi) is an IUCN Least Concern bony-fish species regulated in 12 of 66 jurisdictions tracked by CatchRules across the U.S. and Canada.
The strictest bag limit is 2 (Ontario); the most generous is 350 (Nunavut).
Confirmed by 300 research-grade iNaturalist observations, with Ontario, Minnesota, and Michigan the top jurisdictions by observation count.
Notable details
- Cisco, also called lake herring, were once commercially harvested by the millions of pounds from the Great Lakes.
- They typically reach 10–18 inches and weigh up to 2 pounds.
- Cisco spawn in late fall and early winter, often just as ice begins forming.
- They feed primarily on zooplankton and small crustaceans filtered from open water.
- Cisco are a key forage fish for lake trout, walleye, and northern pike.
Where Cisco are seen
Jurisdictions with rules for Cisco
Background
Coregonus artedi, commonly known as the cisco, is a North American species of freshwater whitefish in the family Salmonidae. The number of species and definition of species limits in North American ciscoes is a matter of debate. Accordingly, Coregonus artedi may refer either in a narrow sense to one of the several types of cisco found e.g. in the Great Lakes, or in a broad sense to the complex of…
Background excerpt adapted from Wikipedia's Cisco article (CC BY-SA). Visit Wikipedia for the full entry.
Other bony fish on CatchRules
Photo credit: iNaturalist / Wikipedia. Identification reference only — verify regulations with the issuing wildlife agency before retaining a catch.