Fish species – size, season and best baits

Pike, perch and zander are the big three for Nordic lure anglers; trout, salmon and grayling dominate running water; bream, roach, tench and carp are the bait angler's fish. Sizes are typical catches, record class in brackets (approximate).

By Filip Nyman · Updated 2026-10-21

Freshwater species

Species (Swedish)	Typical size	Season	Methods	Top baits
Pike (gädda)	1–5 kg (15–20+ kg)	Spring after spawning, autumn Sep–Nov	Spinning, baitcasting, fly, trolling, tip-ups	Spoons, jerkbaits, 12–25 cm shads, spinnerbaits, dead baitfish
Perch (abborre)	100–500 g (1.5–2.5 kg)	Summer, autumn, ice season	Spinning, drop shot, jigging, float, ice jigging	Small spinners, 5–8 cm soft plastics, worms, balance jigs
Zander (gös)	1–4 kg (10–15 kg)	Late summer, autumn, dusk and night	Vertical jigging, trolling, casting shads	8–15 cm shads on 10–30 g heads, wobblers at night
Brown trout (öring)	0.3–2 kg (10+ kg)	Spring–early summer, autumn (check closures)	Fly, spinning, trolling in lakes	Small spoons and spinners, nymphs, dry flies, streamers
Sea trout (havsöring)	1–3 kg (10+ kg)	Coast Mar–May and Oct–Dec	Coastal spinning, fly from shore	Slim 10–25 g coastal lures, shrimp and baitfish flies
Atlantic salmon (lax)	3–10 kg (20–30 kg)	River season ~May–Sep	Fly, spinning, trolling	Tube flies, large spoons, wobblers
Arctic char (röding)	0.3–1.5 kg (5+ kg)	Ice season, spring after ice-out	Ice jigging, deep trolling, fly	Small pimples, red/orange spoons, nymphs
Grayling (harr)	0.3–1 kg (2.5 kg)	Summer and early autumn	Fly, light spinning	Dry flies, nymphs, small spinners
Whitefish (sik)	0.3–1.5 kg (5 kg)	Ice season, autumn, coast in spring	Ice jigging, float, fly	Tiny jigs with maggots, nymphs
Bream (braxen)	1–3 kg (6–8 kg)	Summer	Feeder, bottom, float	Maggots, corn, worms, groundbait
Roach (mört)	50–300 g (1.5 kg)	Spring–autumn	Float, feeder	Maggots, bread, corn
Tench (sutare)	1–3 kg (5 kg)	Early summer, dawn	Float, bottom	Worms, corn, maggots, small boilies
Carp (karp)	3–10 kg (25+ kg)	Late spring–early autumn	Carp rigs, float, method feeder	Boilies, corn, pellets, hair rigs
Asp (asp)	1–4 kg (8 kg)	Summer and autumn	Fast spinning, long casts	Slim fast spoons, surface lures
Burbot (lake)	0.5–2 kg (8 kg)	Winter, at night, under ice	Bottom fishing, ice jigging	Fish strips, worms, dead baitfish
European eel (ål)	–	Protected	Banned	Fully protected for anglers in Sweden – release at once

Key ID tips: zander has glassy eyes and two spiny dorsal fins; perch has dark vertical bars and red-orange lower fins; brown trout has red spots and a square tail, while salmon has a forked tail, fewer spots below the lateral line and a narrow wrist before the tail.

Saltwater species

Species (Swedish)	Typical size	Where	Season	Top baits
Cod (torsk)	1–5 kg (20+ kg)	West coast, Norway, Öresund (Baltic heavily restricted)	Öresund winter, Norway all year	Pirks 60–300 g, shads, shrimp and herring
Mackerel (makrill)	0.3–1 kg	West coast, Skagerrak, Norway	July–September	Feather rigs, 20–40 g spoons
Garfish (näbbgädda)	0.4–1 kg	Baltic coast, Öresund, west coast	May–June	Slim spoons with silk thread, fish strip under a float
Flounder (skrubbskädda)	0.2–1 kg	Sandy bottoms, Baltic and west coast	Spring and autumn evenings	Ragworm, lugworm, mussel
Pollack (lyrtorsk)	1–5 kg	Rocky west coast, Norway, kelp	Summer and autumn, dusk	Soft shads, slim pirks, wobblers
Coalfish (gråsej)	0.5–10 kg	Norway, outer west coast	Summer and autumn	Pirks, shads, sea flies
Herring (strömming/sill)	50–200 g	Baltic and west coast	Spring and autumn	Small sabiki rigs from piers
Ling (långa)	3–15 kg (30+ kg)	Deep rocky water, Norway	All year	Big pirks, whole fish bait
Atlantic halibut (hälleflundra)	10–50 kg (100+ kg)	Northern Norway	Spring–autumn	300–600 g shads, big soft baits

Pike, perch and zander also live in the brackish Stockholm archipelago and Baltic bays – and the Baltic pike grow big. International readers: largemouth and smallmouth bass, walleye (a close relative of zander) and striped/European sea bass are fished with similar soft plastics, crankbaits and surf plugs.