Puye

Habitat Distribution

• Native to Argentina, distributed along Patagonian coastal drainages and into the Falkland Islands; one of the most widely distributed freshwater fish in the Southern Hemisphere.
• Adults settle into still or slow-moving water — stream lower reaches, river mouths, lagoon edges, and lake shallows — generally within a short distance of the sea.
• Juveniles spend their first months at sea before migrating back into freshwater in spring, so populations are concentrated near coastal access points.
• Found in the same Patagonian watersheds as introduced trout, where they form part of the forage base.

Key Locations

• Patagonian coastal streams and river mouths from Río Negro south through Santa Cruz — the core of their Argentine range.
• Tidal lagoons and estuaries along the Atlantic coast of Patagonia, where spring migration pulses concentrate fish.
• Lake systems in northern Patagonia where puye coexist with introduced trout and form part of the forage base.

Specific Spots

• River mouths and tidal lagoon edges are the key entry points during the spring upstream migration — that's where returning juveniles concentrate.
• Adult fish hold in slow backwaters, lake margins, and the quiet lower sections of coastal streams, away from fast current.
• Shallow, vegetated edges of Patagonian lakes provide cover and feeding habitat for resident adults.