Artwork of a player fishing inAnimal Crossing: New Horizons

Fishing is a large part of theAnimal Crossing series, appearing in all the games except forAnimal Crossing: Happy Home Designer. Fish can be donated to themuseum, along withbugs,sea creatures,fossils, andart. They are very diverse in price, ranging from 100Bells to 15,000 Bells. Not all "fish" are actually fish, though, but rather mere aquatic species: thefrog,crawfish,octopus andlobster, for example. Fish can be found in all bodies of water, includingponds,lakes,rivers,waterfalls, and thesea. They can be caught using any type of fishing rod, and if theplayer catches a fish and a villager sees them, the villager will clap.

InAnimal Crossing, if a player leaves behind a fishing rod onAnimal Island, the islander may use the fishing rod when it is given to them, though only on the Game Boy Advance. If used, they may catch either ared snapper or an octopus, the latter of which could not be caught in the main game untilDoubutsu no Mori e+.

Catching fish[edit]

The player must not run when going after the fish or place an item near the body of water, nor grab the item or disturb the water by dropping a snowball, releasing a fish, tossingbeans, causing a tool to break, or swinging a net into the water. This will scare it away, and the player will not see it again. When they see the fish, they must cast the line out using the (A) button. InAnimal Crossing: Wild World, it is also possible to fish by using the touch screen, either tapping the player or tapping the water. The player should position themselves so that the float comes near the fish when it comes to a stop (change distance from shore, angle of casting, position).

The fish, if it sees the bait, will attempt to nibble. Sometimes, however, fish nibble the bait and swim past it (they do not disappear), so the player must recast the bait. If the fish follows and continues to nibble the bait, then the player must wait for the fish to bite the bait to submerge it, making a distinct "plop" noise. Once the bait is submerged, the player must press (A), shake the Wii Remote, or tap the screen as soon as possible. The fish can nibble up to five times, so if the fish has nibbled four times, the next nibble will be a guaranteed bite. If the player draws the line too early or too late, the fish swims away. Common fish such as thesea bass do not require quick reflexes to catch them. However, rare or expensive fish such as theblue marlin require faster timing, so the player must keep their concentration when catching fish. Once the fish is caught the player will hold up the fish to show off andsay something about it, then put the fish in theirpockets.

InAnimal Crossing,City Folk, andNew Horizons, the controller vibrates each time a fish touches the rod, with a stronger vibration occurring when the fish bites. InNew Horizons, the strength of the vibration is also based on the size of the fish.

Fishing rods[edit]

Main article:Fishing rod

To catch fish, the player will first need a rod. There are four main types of fishing rod: the flimsy fishing rod, the normal fishing rod, the silver rod, and the golden rod.

• Flimsy fishing rod: This rod is only available inNew Horizons, and it can be crafted or bought fromNook's Cranny. Its durability is lower than the regular fishing rod.
• Fishing rod: This is a common tool that can be brought for 500Bells, or in the case ofNew Horizons, crafted using a flimsy fishing rod and aniron nugget.
• Silver rod: This rod makes catching fish easier and can also be bought atTom Nook's store. Although it is rarer, the silver rod can be bought for 500Bells, the same as the fishing rod. However, the silver rod is not very rare inNew Leaf; the silver rod is available for purchase in theMuseum Shop for 600Bells after the player has donated 50 fish. It is not available inNew Horizons.
• Golden rod: This rod makes catching fish even easier than with the silver rod, and can only be obtained by catching all fish. In the case ofNew Horizons however, the Golden Rod provides the most durability out of the other rods in the game, and needs to be crafted using a fishing rod and onegold nugget, with itsDIY recipe obtained from catching all fish. For each game in the series, it will take a minimum of eight months (February to September) to catch all the fish withouttime traveling.

In addition to these four,Animal Crossing: New Horizons adds three stylized fishing rods: the colorful fishing rod, the fish fishing rod, and the outdoorsy fishing rod. These are functionally identical to the regular fishing rod, with the only difference being their design. These rods are available from the upgraded Nook's Cranny.

Fish bait[edit]

Main article:Item:Fish bait (New Horizons)

Fish bait is acraftable item inAnimal Crossing: New Horizons that will spawn a random fish when thrown into a body of water. Fish bait can be crafted using onemanila clam, and it stacks up to 10 in the player's inventory. Additionally, it sells for 200Bells, double the selling price of a manila clam.

Times and dates[edit]

Some fish, like thesea bass, can be caught all day and all year. Some fish, however, appear only at certain times of the day or at certain times of the year, like thegar. Most fish either appear all day, between 4 AM and 9 PM, between 9 AM and 4 PM, or between 4 PM and 9 AM.

Fishing locations[edit]

Fish can be found in all bodies of water throughout the player'stown. InAnimal Crossing: New Horizons, the player can use theIsland Designer Construction Permit to create rivers, waterfalls, and ponds on their island.

Sea[edit]

Main article:Sea

For a list of all sea fish, seeList of saltwater fish.

Thesea is the largest body of water in the town and is the only saltwater area. This is where most of the very expensive fish are found, including the shark family.

River[edit]

Main article:River

For a list of all freshwater fish, seeList of freshwater fish.

Theriver is the second largest area of water in town. It runs from north to south, going through one waterfall inWild World or two waterfalls inAnimal Crossing,City Folk, andNew Leaf.

Lake[edit]

Main article:Lake

Alake is where the river widens inAnimal Crossing only. It is not where the river splits in two.

Waterfall[edit]

Main article:Waterfall

Awaterfall is the area where water cascades over acliff. There is onewaterfall in allWild World towns, and two waterfalls inAnimal Crossing,City Folk, andNew Leaf.

River mouth[edit]

The river mouth is where the river meets the sea.Salmon,king salmon, andsturgeon can be caught here.

Pond[edit]

Main article:Pond

A pond is a small pool of water. The average town has two or three scattered around.

Shadow / Size[edit]

See also:List of fish by shadow size

• 

  The shadow of a regular fish.

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  The shadow of a shark.

Non-fish types[edit]

Trash[edit]

Main article:Trash

There are three items of trash: the boot, the empty can, and the old tire. The empty can and boot can be caught in rivers, while the old tire can be caught in either rivers or the sea. Prior toAnimal Crossing: New Leaf, they cannot be sold to, but they can be disposed of atTom Nook's store for free. InNew Leaf, trash can be disposed of atRe-Tail for a fee of 80Bells or thrown away for free if the garbage canpublic works project is built. InWelcome amiibo, the player can also dispose of them without this project if they have a trash can in their home. InNew Horizons, trash can now be sold, and it is used in certain DIY recipes.

Water eggs[edit]

Main articles:Item:Water egg (New Horizons) and Item:Water egg (New Leaf)

InNew Leaf andNew Horizons, water eggs can be obtained from fishing during theBunny Day week.

Lost items[edit]

Main article:Lost item

InAnimal Crossing: City Folk, villagers may lose thekey to their house. When fished out, it can be returned for a reward. If it is not found fast enough, the key will stop appearing, and they will get in by themselves. If the player's pockets are full, the game will not allow them to catch a key, and attempting to do so will always result in failure.

Gallery[edit]

Artwork[edit]

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  Doubutsu no Mori

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  Doubutsu no Mori

• 

  Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp

Screenshots[edit]

• 

  Animal Crossing

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  Animal Island

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  Animal Crossing: City Folk

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  Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp

Trivia[edit]

• InWarioWare: Smooth Moves, one of9-Volt and18-Volt'smicrogames involves the player controlling a fishingWild World character. The player must pull theWii Remote up in order to catch afish from theriver. All fish fromWild World are potential catches in this microgame. This microgame reappears inWarioWare Gold.

Fish

Fishing Fishing Chip C.J. Fish Bait Fishing Rod Fishing Tourney Key Trash Locations Lake Pond River Sea Waterfall Navigational lists By type By shadow size By month Freshwater fish Saltwater fish By game First generation InDoubutsu no Mori InDoubutsu no Mori+ InAnimal Crossing InDoubutsu no Mori e+ InWild World InCity Folk InNew Leaf InPocket Camp InNew Horizons List of fish Crucian carp Herabuna Carp Koi Barbel steed Dace Catfish Giant catfish Pale chub Bitterling Loach Bluegill Small bass Bass Large bass Giant snakehead Eel Freshwater goby Pond smelt Sweetfish Cherry salmon Rainbow trout Stringfish Salmon Goldfish Pop-eyed goldfish Guppy Angelfish Piranha Arowana Coelacanth Arapaima Crawfish Frog Killifish Jellyfish Sea bass Red snapper Barred knifejaw Brook trout Horse mackerel Puffer fish Dab Olive flounder Squid Octopus Sea horse Blue marlin Yellow perch Black bass Char King salmon Dorado Gar Sea butterfly Clownfish Zebra turkeyfish Football fish Tuna Ocean sunfish Hammerhead shark Great white shark Pike Neon tetra Surgeonfish Butterfly fish Napoleonfish Lobster Moray eel Ray Soft-shelled turtle Tadpole Mitten crab Nibble fish Saddled bichir Blowfish Ribbon eel Giant trevally Saw shark Whale shark Oarfish Anchovy Barreleye Betta Golden trout Mahi-mahi Rainbowfish Ranchu goldfish Snapping turtle Sturgeon Suckerfish Tilapia Category •Images •Project

Gameplay elements

Player Player Mayor Catalog Catch quotes Hairstyle Passport Pockets Photo Reaction Reputation Resident Representative Skin tone Tool Town Pass Card Town Town/island Hemisphere Amenities Animal tracks Rebuild the town Acres Objects Public works projects Town fund Town initiative Town ordinance Lost and found Group Life House Happy Home Academy Balloon Event Fêng shui Home loan Letter Luck NookPhone Savings Activities Badges Bug catching Constellation Designing Fishing Mystery Island Tour Stalk Market Swimming Tour(Tortimer Island) Character AI Villager Starting villager Special character Catchphrase Compatibility Conversation Drama Friendship Hobbies Nickname Personality Scrapbook Memory Star sign Minigames NES games Doubutsu no Mori e+: Doubutsu-tachi to Asobou! Desert Island Escape Animal Crossing Puzzle League Currencies Bells Caps Leaf Tickets Leaf Tokens Hotel Tickets Medals MEOW Coupons Nook Miles Play Coins Poki Vouchers Vehicles Bus Camper RV Taxi Train Transportation Cheating Cheating device Glitch Gameplay modification Seeds Time travel Other Fourth Wall NookLink Reset Secret Code Transfer Multiplayer •Situations •Category