Since the original publication of George C. Becker's landmark Fishes of Wisconsin in 1983, many changes have occurred in the Wisconsin fish fauna. The scientific names of 16 native and 2 non-native Wisconsin fishes have been changed, and several others may be changed in the future. Uncommon in the Mississippi River and the lower reaches of its largest tributaries, although there are small areas within the Wisconsin, Black, and Chippewa Rivers where paddlefish are locally common. Zigler et al. Uncommon in the Mississippi, lower Wisconsin, and Wolf Rivers.
Abundance appears to be stable.
We believe that the Wolf River specimens represent a previously unknown native population rather than a recent introduction. The Wolf River has not been thoroughly sampled for nongame fishes and has extensive areas of shallow, shifting-sand bottom that are ideal habitat for the speckled chub. Alternatively, the speckled chub could have reached the Fox River more recently via the Portage Canal, which was built to connect the Wisconsin and Fox Rivers about 160 years ago. Common in the Great Lakes, occasionally moving into the lower reaches of tributaries when water temperatures are cold. Inland, the slimy sculpin is found in a few cold streams that are scattered around the state but concentrated in southwestern Wisconsin and in Trout Lake, Vilas County, and Big Green Lake, Green Lake County.