How to Find Endangered Fish in How to Fish: Quest Guide
How to get an endangered fish in How to Fish: find a fish with the Endangered Species tag, inspect it, give it to the tourist, and summon the Pufferfish.
The endangered fish request is one of the most-searched How to Fish quests because it looks like a hidden species hunt and is not. The tourist on the third island asks you to get rid of a menacing fish, but before he hands over the bait you need, you must bring him a fish with the right label. This guide explains exactly how the tag system works and how to finish the quest without wasting catches.
What you need before starting
The request only appears once you reach the Desert island by completing the Giant Piranha fight on the Forest island. On the Desert island, the pink Standard Lure is the tool for every normal catch — and it is also what you use to find an endangered fish.
| Requirement | Detail |
|---|---|
| Location | Desert island (Island 3) |
| Lure | Pink Standard Lure ($15) |
| Quest giver | Tourist NPC seated at the base of a palm tree |
| Item to hand over | Any fish tagged as an Endangered Species |
| Reward | One Carrot per endangered fish given |
What counts as an endangered fish
The tourist asks for an "endangered creature," not one specific species. This is the part players tend to overthink: there is no single hidden fish and no special "endangered bait" to buy. Any fish you pull from Desert island waters has a chance to carry the Endangered Species status, and any fish with that tag satisfies the request.
Inspect each catch in your inventory before you sell, cook, or eat it. Rarity, difficulty, and Drip variants do not matter here — only the endangered label counts. Needlefish, Bowlfish, and Seahorse, all caught with the Standard Lure, are confirmed to appear as endangered catches.
The moment a catch shows the tag, treat it as a quest item. Do not cook it, sell it, or eat it for hunger, or you will have to fish for another one.
How to get the Carrot from the tourist
Talk to the tourist — he sits at the base of a palm tree and refuses to enter the water because he fears a fish. Equip the Standard Lure and fish the surrounding water, keeping going until one of your catches shows the Endangered Species tag in the inventory. Return to the tourist and give him that fish; he hands you one Carrot in exchange.
You can repeat the trade with more endangered fish to stock up on multiple Carrots, which is worth doing — the Carrot is consumed when you use it, and losing the boss fight means burning one.
From Carrot to Pufferfish to Island 4
Equip the Carrot as your main lure and cast. Every use of the Carrot has a 100% chance to spawn the Pufferfish boss, so you do not need to fish repeatedly to trigger it. The fight itself — the rolling charges, the growth phase, the purple poison — is covered in the Pufferfish boss guide.
When the Pufferfish dies, pick up the Pufferfish Fin it drops and give it to the tourist. He then provides the coordinates for Rocks Island (Island 4), which advances the main story. Once the Carrot and the Fin are handled, the Desert island is effectively cleared.
If the tourist won't accept your fish
If handing over a fish does nothing, the quest is not bugged. Inspect the catch again and confirm it actually carries the Endangered Species tag. A rare-looking fish, a hard catch, or a Drip variant is not automatically valid, and a species name that worked for another player does not help if your own fish lacks the label. If the tag is missing, keep fishing until an endangered catch appears, then bring that one to the tourist intact.
Verified patch status
Verified for patch 1.0.9 / Last checked Aug 24, 2026. The quest chain has been stable since launch, but the game ships patches quickly — see the official Steam Community announcements for anything that changes Desert island behavior.
For every other species these waters hold, see the all fish guide; for the route onward, the islands guide.
Frequently Asked Questions
Quick answers to the most common How to Fish questions.
What is an endangered fish in How to Fish?
Any fish carrying the Endangered Species tag in your inventory. It is a status, not a species: any catch on the Desert island can roll the tag, and it is flagged on screen when you catch it.
Which fish count as endangered?
Needlefish, Bowlfish, and Seahorse are confirmed to appear with the tag, but they are examples rather than the only valid answers. Only the tag matters, not the species.
How do I check if my fish is endangered?
Inspect each catch with the F key before selling, cooking, or eating it. Drip variants and rare-looking fish do not count unless the Endangered Species label is present.
What do I do with an endangered fish?
Give it to the tourist sitting under a palm tree on the Desert island. He hands you a Carrot — the bait that summons the Pufferfish boss — and pays one Carrot per endangered fish.