(Micropterus salmoides)
Two largemouth bass reside in the pond along the Genesee Trail. Often stocked for sport fishing, this fish is now common throughout the United States.
Invertebrates and small fish.
International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List status
(Acipenser fulvescens)
Called the “Dinosaurs of the Great Lakes,” the lake sturgeon is the oldest and largest native species of fish in the Great Lakes. Because of this, sturgeon are kind of like swimming fossils. Lake sturgeon are bottom-feeders with sensitive spade-like snouts and armor-like plates for protection. Fingerling sturgeon are raised at the Zoo, and some are released into the Genesee River each year as part of a reintroduction program led by the USGS and NYSDEC. Fingerlings reside in a tank in the Creatures from the River’s Edge Building; 2 larger sturgeon reside in the Genesee Trail pond.
These carnivores eat snails, mollusks, worms, crayfish and larvae.
International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List status
Lake sturgeon were once so abundant in the Great Lakes region that they were caught and discarded by fishermen. Today they are rarely seen and are considered a threatened and endangered species. Over harvested for their eggs, oil and meat, the lake sturgeon’s numbers have also dropped because its spawning grounds are being destroyed and polluted. The lake sturgeon’s extremely slow reproductive cycle also makes it susceptible to decline. In 2003, the U.S. Geological Survey along with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation stocked the Genesee River with 1,900 juvenile lake sturgeon in an effort to restore the species to its natural habitat.
Seneca Park Zoo is home to multiple species of Lake Malawi cichlids. The cichlid aquarium can be found inside the Animals of the Savanna building. Many of the species have very similar behaviors, and almost all of them eat algae and plankton. However, they do live at varying depths.
Hundreds of cichlid species reside in Lake Malawi, and each species has a very specific diet as either algae scrapers, fish eaters, or insectivores.
International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List status
Their threats include pollution, invasive species, and overfishing for the pet trade.
