Despite its extensive history of pollution, Onondaga Lake currently supports more than fifty species of fish.

A Productive Past

Onondaga Lake and its tributaries once supported a unique and productive cold-water fishery that included migratory Atlantic salmon. Ciscoes were so prolific in Onondaga Lake, they became known as the Onondaga Lake Whitefish, a delicacy that graced menus in Syracuse and New York City in the 1800s. Lake sturgeon and turbot were also part of the lake's early fish life.

Pollution and Urbanization Bring Change

A century of industrial pollution, urbanization and sewage severely impacted Onondaga Lake's fishery. Lower levels of dissolved oxygen, turbidity, elevated ammonia concentrations, salinity, and mercury contamination reduced plant life in both the lake and its tributaries and caused changes in available fish spawning areas. By 1920, both Atlantic salmon and Onondaga Lake Whitefish no longer thrived in Onondaga Lake. In 1927, surveys identified only 9 different species and in 1946, 13 species were recorded. In the 1950s fishery surveys showed the more than 90% of the total fish in Onondaga Lake were common carp.

See Onondaga Lake Pollution for more information about pollution problems and pollution history.

Today's Surprising Diversity

Today, populations and varieties of fish in Onondaga Lake are increasing and reflect a vast improvement from earlier conditions. Contrary to the popular myth, evaluations of the fish in Onondaga Lake have documented surprisingly diverse warm water fish species in the lake throughout most of the year.

Recent sampling efforts have identified a total of 52 different fish species in Onondaga Lake. The species present include desirable sport fish such as largemouth and small mouth bass, walleye, and northern pike. Larger populations of golden shiner, white perch, gizzard shad, bluegills, and pumpkinseed sunfish can also be found near the lake's shoreline, which provides some good sites for catch and release fishing for area residents.

Oxygen Issues

Small Mouth Bass

The Onondaga Lake fishery is currently made up of both year-round residents and many species that migrate in and out of the lake depending on changes in lakewide oxygen levels. During fall turnover, for example, fish like small mouth bass and walleye swim out of the lake outlet in the Seneca River in order to survive these low oxygen periods. (For more information on dissolved oxygen problems in Onondaga Lake, see The Importance of Oxygen).

For a cold water species such as Atlantic salmon to survive year-round in the lake, its deeper waters must consistently support higher levels of oxygen and better habitats with more plant life. Habitats in the tributaries where fish could spawn would also need to be improved.