Daniel Kemp / U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Among the freshwater fishes of North America, there exists a loose hierarchy of fame and public awareness. The fish near the top of that hierarchy are often those with the largest fisheries – the largemouth bass and rainbow trout that legions of (justifiably) excited anglers get up at the crack of dawn to feel on the ends of their lines.
And while we’d never dream of disparaging those iconic species, some of the most widespread, unique, beautiful, tasty, and hard-fighting fish can often live under the shadow of those giants.