Lake Annecy fish: féra, Arctic char, and what the restaurant menu doesn't say

Lake Annecy's fish are not an event but a year-round subject: the fish life of the lake, the fishing rules around it, and two species that have become emblems of the local table, the féra and the Arctic char.

Here is what the sources publish on species, fishing and food, and what they leave deliberately vague about where the fish on your plate comes from.

How many fish species are there in Lake Annecy?

The figures do not match, because they do not measure the same thing. A 2016 heritage guide lists 20 species in the lake, with perch, roach and whitefish (the féra) the most abundant. Larousse, for its part, mentions around fifteen species.

The latest scientific fishing survey, run by the SILA and INRAE (France's national research institute for agriculture and the environment), found only 9 species caught during the 2023 survey. This lower figure reflects a specific sampling method, not species disappearing: it does not cover the same scope as the heritage inventories.

Around ten species are described as fished commercially, led by Arctic char, lake trout and féra, alongside pike, perch, burbot, carp, roach, bream, bleak and tench.

Which fish define the local table?

The féra, the local name for the whitefish, is presented as the lake's signature fish, served grilled or as a fillet in restaurants that promote local produce. The Arctic char, described by one fishing guide as the jewel of Alpine lakes, completes the pair.

These two species set Annecy apart from the more generic image of lowland lakes, dominated by pike, perch and roach, which are also found here. Whitefish has been introduced into more than twenty Alpine lakes since the end of the nineteenth century, Annecy included: it is not a native species, but its long presence has made it a local marker.

Does the féra served in restaurants come from the lake?

Not always. One food article consulted admits that some restaurants serve whitefish of another origin, with the words “from the lake” sometimes more a matter of marketing than of any systematic check on provenance.

Arctic char and lake trout remain in limited supply, especially in winter according to the same source: a visitor expecting to find them on every menu in summer may be disappointed. No tourist office publishes a certified list of restaurants using only fish caught in the lake.

Restaurants that feature lake produce are listed in restaurants on the shore of Lake Annecy and restaurants with a lake view, without any verified guarantee of origin.

When are you allowed to fish on Lake Annecy?

• Trout, whitefish (féra) and Arctic char: open from 31 January to 18 October.
• Pike: open from 1 January to 28 February, then from 25 April to 30 November.

Recreational fishing requires a permit issued by the local angling association, AAPPMA Annecy Lac Pêche, or the departmental federation: it is not free. No single, up-to-date price list was found covering every type of permit (day, year, shore, boat, night).

What isn't published about fishing on Lake Annecy?

No source gives the number of anglers per year, or the economic value of fishing or of selling lake fish. The historical catches quoted remain anecdotal: a 113 cm pike at Veyrier-du-Lac and a 42 kg carp in the reed beds of Saint-Jorioz, both in 2005, are the only records documented in the sources consulted.

There is no curve of angler numbers either, and no map of temporary closures to protect the reed beds. What the guides confirm, without putting a figure on it, is that pike and perch are mostly fished early in the morning.

For the water conditions behind this fish life, Lake Annecy water temperature and the depth of Lake Annecy give the physical context.

Sources

CEN Rhône-Alpes (heritage guide, 2016), Larousse (2026), SILA-INRAE (scientific monitoring of the lake, 2023-2024), Haute-Savoie Mont Blanc Tourisme (fishing on Lake Annecy, 2025), Annecy Lac Pêche (AAPPMA, 2024).

water-taxi.fr, annecyvibes.com (2026), campingideal.com, peche.com, april-lacdannecy.com (lake wildlife, historical catches 2005). Research compiled on 12 September 2026. No source publishes an annual number of anglers or quantified economic figures for fishing on the lake.