Matthew L. Miller

A person holding a mountain mullet underwater

Perhaps not surprising given their name, mountain mullet are typically found in clear, swift-following mountain streams at elevations up to 4900 ft/1500 m. Some consider them "tropical trout" as they tend to hang out in deep pools in mountain streams (+ are targeted by fly fishers!) #25DaysofFishmas

A Mountain Mullet wearing a Santa hat; the text says Decemebr 6

Mountain mullet is part of the Mugilidae family (grey mullets), a group whose members are mostly found in marine coastal waters worldwide. The mountain mullet goes against the flow (literally!) of its family by migrating far inland and spending most of its adult life in freshwater #25DaysofFishmas

Common goldeneye, an abundant Idaho waterfowl species in winter. I photographed this one in an aviary. The wild goldeneyes are quite skittish.

Common goldeneye. This waterfowl are very common on Idaho's trout streams & rivers during winter.

Their whistling wings are a soundtrack to the season.

Madtoms are kind of the Tiny Tim of the catfish family.

#25DaysofFishmas

Fly fishing a small stream, one of my favorite things. This one is for Chattahoochee bass in Georgia, great fish and great water.

When the dog bites,
When the bee stings,
When I'm feeling saaaaad...

#25DaysofFishmas

The Sting of the Wild by Justin O. Schmidt.

You would enjoy this book. The author rates the stings of bees, wasps & ants, and has “tasting notes” for each sting as if he’s a wine aficionado. Great science writing.

When Deer Marks Glow in the Dark? Deer rubs and scrapes glow under UV light, revealing surprising behavior shifts during the rut and new insights into deer communication.

When white-tailed bucks make scrapes and rubs, they're communicating information.

You could even say it glows.

I was hoping for a Mad Max Furiosus!

Having been stung by many bees (former commercial beekeeper) as well as tadpole madtoms (current fish biologist), the madtom sting lasts longer and has a deeper, rounder pain than a bee sting.

Maybe I need to get stung by all madtom species? Call Guinness!

"Madtom motels" - artificial structures to provide Carolina madtoms with nest cover in the wild

No room at the inn? Not for the Carolina madtom! To increase madtom numbers, conservation groups have built artificial “madtom motels” to provide cover for nest sites in the wild - not a long-term fix, but can help until habitat management can be done #25DaysofFishmas cals.ncsu.edu/applied-ecol...

A Carolina madtom catfish wearing a Santa hat; the text says December 5

The Ictaluridae family (North American catfish) has ~50 species ranging in size from the Carolina madtom (max length = 5 in/12 cm) to the blue catfish (max length = 5 ft/165 cm). The family name “Ictaluridae” comes from Greek ichthys = fish + ailouros = cat, so literally: "fish cat” #25DaysofFishmas

Rainbow trout.

The river where I spent the day.

A day in search of December trout.

#25DaysofFishmas #flyfishing

A logo from the Georgia Bass Slam program

The Suwanee bass is part of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources' "Bass Slam" program that rewards anglers who catch at least 5 of the 10 different species of black bass found in Georgia's waters within the same calendar year (georgiawildlife.com/fishing/angl...) #25DaysofFishmas

A bass angler on a bass boat

Bass fishing is big business across the US: Black basses like the Suwannee bass are among the popular targets for anglers + are often the focus of tournaments. In 2016, over 9 million anglers spent 117 million days fishing for black bass according to the US Fish & Wildlife Service #25DaysofFishmas

I love black bass diversity. I’ve caught 10 species. #25DaysofFishmas

A Suwannee bass wearing a Santa hat; the text says December 4

Suwannee bass is one of the smaller members of the black bass genus (Micropterus) typically growing only ~8 in/21 cm long - though females grow faster + reach larger sizes than males. Mature fish often have turquoise blue coloration on the cheeks/belly that's brighter when breeding #25DaysofFishmas

Great Lakes books for your holiday gift list | Great Lakes Echo By Eric Freedman Looking for a holiday gift for a reader who loves the Great Lakes? Here are five prospects to consider – and what our reporters learned from interviewing their authors this year.

Great Lakes books for your holiday gift list

greatlakesecho.org/2025/12/02/g...

A diagram highlighting the differences between the bluegill (top left), readear (right middle) and pumpkinseed (bottom left) sunfish species

Redear sunfish look similar to a couple of familiar sunfish: the bluegill + pumpkinseed.

How to tell these cousins apart? Bluegill lack the redear’s orange spot on the black ear flap, while pumpkinseeds share the orange ear flap spot but have wavy bluish lines on their cheeks #25DaysofFishmas

Alligator gar, caught on "Gar Trek" with Solomon David in Texas.

Electrofishing a Louisiana bayou with Solomon David. We're holding 2 spotted gar.

Fighting an alligator gar.

Longnose gar caught on the fly.

Gar days are great days.

I've pursued them with fly, lure & bait and even drones & electrofishing with @solomonrdavid.bsky.social .

I love the bayous, rivers & backwaters where you find them, and how at the end of the day you are often dirty, dehydrated, exhausted and happy.

#25DaysofFishmas

Can confirm. Targeting sunfish is a lot of fun, especially with kids.

Santa's sleigh being pulled by the 7 living species of gar

Gars historically haven't had the same protections as sportfish like bass or trout. But thanks to folks like @solomonrdavid.bsky.social, @matthewlmiller.bsky.social + others, people - and legislators (www.mprnews.org/story/2023/0...) - are starting to appreciate these awesome fish #25DaysofFishmas

Florida gar caught in the Everglades. This small backwater produced strikes on nearly every cast.

The Florida gar is abundant in the Everglades. Find the right spot & you'll get a strike on every cast. Landing one is another matter.

It's also the only gar (that I know of) featured in a popular song: Seminole Wind by John Anderson. #25DaysofFishmas

A Florida gar near the water's surface

Like other gars, the Florida gar has a specialized swim bladder that can pull double-duty as a lung. This enables them to breath air and survive in poorly oxygenated waters that most other fish couldn't tolerate. During warm months, you may even see them gulping air at the surface #25DaysofFishmas

I've caught the 5 US gar species. The Cuban gar would be near the top of my #Fishmas wish list.

#25DaysofFishmas

A map of the continental US showing the Florida gar's native (orange) and introduced (purple) ranges

Florida gar are found, perhaps unsurprisingly, in Florida as well as the Savannah + Ochlockonee River systems of Georgia and a tiny sliver of South Carolina. You’ll often find them cosplaying as floating logs in warm, sluggish waters where there are lots of aquatic plants #25DaysofFishmas

One of my all-time #Fishmas favorites.

#25DaysofFishmas

The rise of goldfishes in North America ABSTRACT. Goldfish Carassius auratus is a longstanding global invader that has entered a new phase in its invasion history, spreading into new geographical

Goldfishes (Carassius spp.) have a centuries-long history of invasion in North America, but have apparently become superabundant in ponds & wetlands in recent years.
Read our review:
academic.oup.com/fisheries/ar...

Already a day behind, redear sunfish for Day 2 of #25DaysOfFishmas

Bluegill, caught fly fishing in a Pennsylvania farm pond.

Pumpkinseeds are a common catch when I fish local Boise ponds. They're not native but established in many waters.

The green sunfish is a species I encounter in many places. They are adaptable and seem able to live in more polluted waters than many species.

Orange-spotted sunfish, caught in Indiana. This is the smallest species of sunfish I've caught on hook-and-line.

Fishing for sunfish is one of the simplest & most fun forms of angling, especially with a fly rod.

I love summer evenings on the local pond, casting ants to bluegills. And chasing new sunfish species when I travel.

#25DaysofFishmas

Spotted Gars think they’re salmon swimming upstream😂

Most gars do in fact migrate to spawn, typically from rivers & lakes into adjacent floodplains.

Some gars, however, swim upstream to spawn. Unlike salmon, gars don’t die after spawning, but often return to the same spawning areas👍
🎥 D.McDonald

Cover of the book “Hornyheads, Madtoms, and Darters: Narratives on Central Appalachian Fishes” by Stuart A. Welsh.

A fun book for the fish nerd on your #Fishmas list.

23 essays on Appalachian fishes. It covers a variety of topics including popular “game” fishes. But I especially appreciate the love for fish diversity, including native suckers, chubs, darters and more.

#25DaysofFishmas