I have a question for those of you who work in the biz.....
I know this is a difficult question to answer with overlapping ranges and extripation etc, but is there an agreed upon state (not state of mind) among fisheries professionals that has the highest numbers of freshwater species? I know some exceptions and oddities must occur in coastal states with fish that can tolerate some brackish water, and with introduced species.... but in general terms.

Seems that MN would be very high on the list with all the drainages that occur in our state.
I suppose I could get offa my rump and do some research, but why reinvent the wheel if one of you guys already has the scoop?

And more seriously, wich states have seen the greatest reduction of species?

I would think the coastal mountain states along the Chesapeake drainage would be up there as well.

I was reading florida has the highest verity with all the introduced fish.. The everglades are literally an aquarium now.

Arizona is the same situation. There are tons of man-made ponds/lakes all over the state. Not to mention the multitude of golf courses with waterways. When I lived there in the mid 90's, my then wife and I went fishing in a golf course "creek".. and about fainted when we saw a school of WELL over 200 angelfish (BIG ones too) swim by.

WOW I wonder how a large angel fish would fight on a ultra light spinning rod? hehehe

LOL
Actually, probably a lot like a sunfish. Same basic shape. These angels were about the size of your hand...

I think the answer to both is gold ol' PA.
That's just an educated guess though..

But a couple years back there were a few threads on teh board of quizzes. Everyone would put their answers, and the "quiz makers" would show the correct ones after a day or two of no replies.
One of the questions was "which state has the highest number of freshwater fish species".
The choices were Pennsylvania, Tennessee, I think Florida, and one was something way off the bat, like Wyoming or something..

The guy never posted the results to taht quiz. I've wondered ever since.
But my guess would be PA, being connected to the Delaware and Susquehanna, and the estuaries attached, the Ohio, and lake Erie watersheds, as well as the Potomac. That makes it so PA has east coast species like Chain Pickerel, Fallfish, and Redbreast Sunfish, migratory fish such as Shortnose Sturgeon, Atlantic Sturgeon, and large Shad, a *#^& load of sucker speceis from the Ohio drainage, etc..

But Pennsylvania also has more "Threatened, Endangered, and Candidate" species than any other state I've seen..

Sorry for the long winded response. My guess would be PA for both of your questions..

agreed. PA has to be tops

I think it's probably a tossup at this point. In addition to introduced fishes, you have to also take into consideration the changes in classification that are ongoing right now in respect to molecular analysis. A good example outside of fish is the slimy salamander, which was recently split into 15 separate valid species with non-overlapping ranges.

However, for highest overall diversity, I would look in one of two places: Florida, and believe it or not, Oklahoma.

I think Florida is probably the most likely candidate for one reason, and that's released aquarium fish. Pretty much everywhere right now you run into the occasional escapee, but Florida and some of the surrounding parts of Georgia and Alabama are the only places where those fish might survive. Unfortunately, there is no viable method to constantly be aware of the number of established exotics in Florida.

We currently have 176 widely recognized species in Oklahoma. This number comes from Fishes of Oklahoma, the principle textbook on the subject. It doesn't include subspecies, and it does not include some of the more recently split species, although it is up to date on species that have been lumped together. The reason for this is simple: we have a huge diversity of both cyprinids and darters. Both groups make up the vast majority of species in Oklahoma when combined. The political boundaries of Oklahoma encompass several aquatic ecological regions, which is responsible for this diversity.

If you wanted to look for a region with the highest native diversity, I would search around the eastern Oklahoma/Arkansas/Missouri/eastern Kansas area. The various rivers in the area are extremely rich in endemic species.

I forgot madtoms. They are another large group in the eastern part of the state that are very varied and that contribute to the overall diversity.

I've changed my mind, PA seems to win. Here's a list of species, although at least two of them (Amur Pike and Blue Pike) are no longer present, and some subspecies are included. Still it has a somewhat higher diversity than either OK or AR, especially when you throw in saltwater species. I'm impressed.
http://www.fish.state.pa.us/pafish/fishhtms/chap2.htm

Florida has 298.
Pennsylvania has only 206.
Oklahoma has only 176.
Minnesota has only 165.
Arizona has 35 native fish.

Everything was either listed as a total or counted with excel. I did not go through and systematically remove fish that I thought should not be on the list, all lists claimed to be freshwater only or fish that had been sampled in freshwater at least once.

I am sure that Florida is the winner because of introduced species. Also the fact that tropical areas generally have more species of fish because they are wetter and stable tropical climates allow for greater speciation.

Oklahoma
http://www.wildlifedepartment.com/sportfish.htm

Florida List
http://myfwc.com/fishing/Fishes/sci-name.html

PA http://www.fish.state.pa.us/pafish/fishhtms/chap2.htm

AZ http://www.azgfd.gov/h_f/sport_fish.shtml

Amur Pike-Glendale Lake, Cambria County, along w/ a few other waters..
wow..I shouldn't know that..

I guess it would make sense why Florida is #1, though sampling once doesn't seem like a valid way to add any species to a "tally"..
There are Pacu and even Pirhanna caught in the 3 rivers every few years. Doesn't mean there's a population..

I'm not arguing with you though, Florida's #1. I'm wondering about the highest # of natives..

Hey don't forget the four talapia that were caught and proved caught on the Allegheny River near Pittsburgh. Four others were supposedly caught as well. Then you have the seals that were in the Delaware. Sure they aren't a fish, but you never know in a couple million years they might have gills;)
-Will