One of the nifty features of Animal Crossing: New Horizons is its ever-changing seasons that are a reflection of the real world. When it’s fall in real life, it’s fall in Animal Crossing, meaning there are always new things to enjoy as you play. As each month goes by, the selection of fish that appear throughout the game changes, so you’ll always want to be aware of the selection for any given month.
Sometimes, certain fish are only available for a few months out of the year, while others appear more frequently. It’s also important to consider which hemisphere you’re in, as this will impact the fish that appear in your area. For the month of October 2021, New Horizons has a lot of changes with its fish selection, and below, we’ll cover everything you need to know about the new additions.
Further reading:
Fishing in Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Fishing in Animal Crossing: New Horizons isn’t too complicated, but there are some things you should be aware of. For starters, each fish will give you some indication of its presence, such as a shadow or fin. The size of the fish’s shadow is indicative of how big the fish is — which makes sense. So, if you’re prioritizing a specific fish that happens to be large, you can safely skip over the smaller shadows.
To fish, you need to have a fishing rod, which can be purchased from Nook’s Cranny (or crafted). Approach a body of water, such as a river, pond, or the sea, and look for a shadow to appear. Typically, these shadows will indicate the presence of a fish, but sometimes you’ll only get trash instead. Throw your line at the fish’s shadow, let it sit for a few moments, and as soon as it “plops” down, reel in the line. If timed correctly, you’ll catch the fish. In addition, if you’re playing on a normal Nintendo Switch (as opposed to the Switch Lite), you’ll feel a vibration indicating it’s time to reel in the fish.
Keep in mind, you can always sell your fish at Nook’s Cranny, but once a week, CJ comes to your island, and he actually offers more bells than you’d get otherwise, so it pays to sell to him instead. You must finish CJ’s fishing challenge before he’ll accept fish from you. CJ will appear anywhere around your island, so keep an eye out for him as you explore.
Changes in October
For the month of October, the Northern Hemisphere features a handful of changes. Notably, 23 fish have left as of October 1, including the crawfish, salmon, piranha, gar, blue marlin, and many more. Replacing them are the yellow perch and dab, so keep this in mind as you fish.
As for the Southern Hemisphere, several fish have left, including bitterling, yellow perch, sturgeon, and football fish. Replacing them are many others, such as the killifish, crawfish, snapping turtle, sea horse, guppy, and more.
Below are the full lists of changes for both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres:
Northern Hemisphere
- Pale chub: River, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. (200 bells)
- Crucian carp: River, all day (160 bells)
- Dace: River, 4 p.m. to 9 a.m. (240 bells)
- Carp: Pond, all day (200 bells)
- Koi: Pond, 4 p.m. to 9 a.m. (4,000 bells)
- Goldfish: Pond, all day (1,300 bells)
- Pop-eyed goldfish: Pond, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. (1,300 bells)
- Ranchu goldfish: Pond, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. (4,500 bells)
- Snapping turtle: River, 9 p.m. to 4 a.m. (5,000 bells)
- Freshwater goby: River, 4 p.m. to 9 a.m. (400 bells)
- Catfish: Pond, 4 p.m. to 9 a.m. (800 bells)
- Bluegill: River, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. (18o bells)
- Black bass: River, all day (400 bells)
- Tilapia: River, all day (800 bells)
- Pike: River, all day (1,800 bells)
- Cherry salmon: River (clifftop) pond, 4 p.m. to 9 a.m. (1,000 bells)
- Char: River (clifftop) pond, 4 p.m. to 9 a.m. (3,800 bells)
- Golden trout: River (clifftop), 4 p.m. to 9 a.m. (15,000 bells)
- Mitten crab: River, 4 p.m. to 9 a.m. (2,000 bells)
- Guppy: River, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. (1,300 bells)
- Angelfish: River, 4 p.m. to 9 a.m. (3,000 bells)
- Betta: River, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. (2,500 bells)
- Neon tetra: River, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. (500 bells)
- Rainbowfish: River, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. (800 bells)
- Sturgeon: River (mouth), all day (10,000 bells)
- Sea horse: Sea, all day (1,100 bells)
- Zebra turkeyfish: Sea, all day (500 bells)
- Anchovy: Sea, 4 a.m. to 9 p.m. (200 bells)
- Horse mackerel: Sea, all day (150 bells)
- Barred knifejaw: Sea, all day (5,000 bells)
- Sea bass: Sea, all day (400 bells)
- Red snapper: Sea, all day (3,000 bells)
- Dab: Sea, all day (300 bells)
- Olive flounder: Sea, all day (800 bells)
- Moray eel: Sea, all day (2,000 bells)
- Ribbon eel: Sea, all day (600 bells)
- Giant trevally: Pier, all day (4,500 bells)
- Mahi-mahi: Pier, all day (6,000 bells)
- Ocean sunfish: Sea, 4 a.m. to 9 p.m. (4,000 bells)
- Ray: Sea, 4 a.m. to 9 p.m. (3,000 bells)
- Barreleye: Sea, 9 p.m. to 4 a.m. (15,000 bells)
- Coelacanth: Sea (raining), all day (15,000 bells)
Southern hemisphere
- Pale chub: River, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. (200 bells)
- Crucian carp: River, all day (160 bells)
- Dace: River, 4 p.m. to 9 a.m. (160 bells)
- Carp: Pond, all day (300 bells)
- Koi: Pond, 4 p.m. to 9 a.m. (4,000 bells)
- Goldfish: Pond, all day (1,300 bells)
- Pop-eyed goldfish: Pond, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. (1,300 bells)
- Ranchu goldfish: Pond, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. (4,500 bells)
- Killifish: Pond, all day (300 bells)
- Crawfish: Pond, all day (200 bells)
- Snapping turtle: River, 9 p.m. to 4 a.m. (5,000 bells)
- Tadpole: Pond, all day (100 bells)
- Freshwater goby: River, 4 p.m. to 9 a.m. (400 bells)
- Loach: River, all day (400 bells)
- Bluegill: River, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. (180 bells)
- Black bass: River, all day (400 bells)
- Cherry salmon: River (clifftop) pond, 4 p.m. to 9 a.m. (1,000 bells)
- Char: River (clifftop) pond, 4 p.m. to 9 a.m. (3,800 bells)
- Golden trout: River (clifftop), 4 p.m. to 9 a.m. (15,000 bells)
- Guppy: River, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. (1,300 bells)
- Neon tetra: River, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. (500 bells)
- Sea horse: Sea, all day (1,100 bells)
- Clown fish: Sea, all day (650 bells)
- Surgeonfish: Sea, all day (1,000 bells)
- Butterfly fish: Sea, all day (1,000 bells)
- Zebra turkeyfish: Sea, all day (500 bells)
- Anchovy: Sea, 4 a.m. to 9 p.m. (200 bells)
- Horse mackerel: Sea, all day (150 bells)
- Barred knifejaw: Sea, all day (5,000 bells)
- Sea bass: Sea, all day (400 bells)
- Red snapper: Sea, all day (3,000 bells)
- Dab: Sea, all day (300 bells)
- Olive flounder: Sea, all day (800 bells)
- Squid: Sea, all day (500 bells)
- Tuna: Pier, all day (7,000 bells)
- Blue marlin: Pier, all day (10,000 bells)
- Oarfish: Sea, all day (9,000 bells)
- Barreleye: Sea, 9 p.m. to 4 a.m. (15,000 bells)
- Coelacanth: Sea (raining), all day (15,00 bells)
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