One of the main features in Animal Crossing: New Horizons is being able to catch different wildlife. Wildlife is broken down into three groups: bugs, fish, and deep-sea creatures. Every one of them is different. They appear in different months, places, and times of day. Even weather can affect what you can find. You can find lots of wildlife during the day. However, some only come out at night, from dusk until dawn. For many players, completing the Critterpedia and filling up the museum is a goal. In order to get every one out there, you’ll need to play day and night.
In New Horizons, you can choose which hemisphere your island is based in: North or South. Selecting the hemisphere makes a huge impact on what animals will appear at times of the year. In the lists below, NH stands for North Hemisphere, while SH is South Hemisphere. Next to each hemisphere, the period of availability will be given in months. Note that some bugs, fish, and sea creatures appear all year round in both hemispheres.
Animal Crossing: New Horizons is available on Nintendo Switch for your regional pricing.
BUGS
There are 80 bugs altogether to find in New Horizons. 25 of these only come out at night. Some come out as early as 4pm, while others come out as late as 11pm. Some bugs stop appearing after four o’clock in the morning, but appear as early as five in the evening.
| Name | Selling Price | Location | Time | Month |
| Atlas Moth | 3,000 | On trees | 7pm – 4am |
NH: April – September SH: October – March |
| Bell Cricket | 430 | On the ground | 5pm – 8am |
NH: September – October SH: March – April |
| Centipede | 300 | Hitting rocks | 4pm – 11pm |
NH: All months except July & August SH: All months except January & February |
| Cricket | 130 | On the ground | 5pm – 8am |
NH: September – November SH: March – May |
| Cyclommatus Stag | 8,000 | On coconut trees | 5pm – 8am |
NH: July – August SH: January – February |
| Emperor Butterfly | 4,000 | Flying | 5pm – 8am | Both Hemispheres: December – March / June – September |
| Firefly | 300 | Flying | 7pm – 4am |
NH: June SH: December |
| Giant Stag | 10,000 | On trees | 11pm – 8am |
NH: July – August SH: January – February |
| Giant Water Bug | 2,000 | On ponds and rivers | 7pm – 8am |
NH: April – September SH: October – March |
| Giraffe Stag | 12,000 | On coconut trees | 5pm – 8am |
NH: July – August SH: January – February |
| Golden Stag | 12,000 | On coconut trees | 5pm – 8am |
NH: July – August SH: January – February |
| Goliath Beetle | 8,000 | On coconut trees | 5pm – 8am |
NH: June – September SH: December – March |
| Hermit Crab | 1,000 | On beaches | 7pm – 8am |
Both Hemispheres: All Months |
| Horned Atlas | 8,000 | On coconut trees | 5pm – 8am |
NH: July – August SH: January – February |
| Horned Dynastid | 1,350 | On trees | 5pm – 8am |
NH: July – August SH: January – February |
| Horned Elephant | 8,000 | On coconut trees | 5pm – 8am |
NH: July – August SH: January – February |
| Horned Hercules | 12,000 | On coconut trees | 5pm – 8am |
NH: July – August SH: January – February |
| Man-Faced Stink Bug | 1,000 | On flowers | 7pm – 8am |
NH: March – October SH: September – April |
| Mosquito | 130 | Flying | 5pm – 4am |
NH: June – September SH: December – March |
| Moth | 130 | Flying by light | 7pm – 4am |
Both Hemispheres: All Months |
| Rainbow Stag | 6,000 | On trees | 7pm – 8am |
NH: June – September SH: December – March |
| Scarab Beetle | 10,000 | On trees | 11pm – 8am |
NH: July – August SH: January – February |
| Scorpion | 8,000 | On the ground | 7pm – 4am |
NH: May – October SH: November – April |
| Spider | 600 | Hanging down from shaken trees | 7pm – 8am |
Both Hemispheres: All Months |
| Tarantula | 8,000 | On the ground | 7pm – 4am |
NH: November – April SH: May – October |
You can find moths like this one fluttering around lights outside.
FISH
Altogether, there are 80 different fish you can catch in New Horizons. 23 can only be found at night or between dusk and dawn. Some fish only appear for a few hours, late at night until very early in the morning. These fish appear in different places; in rivers, the sea, and ponds. Some appear only in specific places, such as clifftop ponds or rivers. Fish have different shadow sizes, but you won’t know what you’ve caught until you successfully reel it in. The largest fish have their fins poking out of the water, such as sharks.
NOTE: Char has slightly more complicated appearance times, depending on the time of year. In March to June (north hemisphere) and September to December (south hemisphere), they appear from 4pm until 9am, as noted below. However, in September to November (NH) and March to May (SH), they are reported to appear all day instead.
| Name | Selling Price | Location | Time | Shadow Size | Month |
| Angelfish | 3,000 | River | 4pm – 9am | Small |
NH: May – October SH: November – April |
| Arapaima | 10,000 | River | 4pm – 9am | Largest |
NH: June – September SH: December – March |
| Arowana | 10,000 | River | 4pm – 9am | Large |
NH: June – September SH: December – March |
| Barreleye | 15,000 | Sea | 9pm – 4am | Small |
Both Hemispheres: All Months |
| Blowfish | 5,000 | Sea | 9pm – 4am | Medium |
NH: May – August SH: November – February |
| Catfish | 800 | Pond | 4pm – 9am | Large |
NH: May – October SH: November – April |
| Char | 3,800 | Clifftop River/Pond | 4pm – 9am (see note above) | Medium |
NH: March – June / September – November SH: March – May / September – December |
| Cherry Salmon | 1,000 | Clifftop River | 4pm – 9am | Medium |
NH: March – June / September – November SH: March – May / September – December |
| Dace | 240 | River | 4pm – 9am | Medium |
Both Hemispheres: All Months |
| Football Fish | 2,500 | Sea | 4pm – 9am | Large |
NH: November – March SH: May – September |
| Freshwater Goby | 400 | River | 4pm – 9am | Small |
Both Hemispheres: All Months |
| Gar | 6,000 | Pond | 4pm – 9am | Largest |
NH: June – September SH: December – March |
| Golden Trout | 15,000 | Clifftop River | 4pm – 9am | Medium |
Both Hemispheres: March – May / September – November |
| Great White Shark | 15,000 | Sea | 4pm – 9am | Largest with Fin |
NH: June – September SH: December – March |
| Hammerhead Shark | 8,000 | Sea | 4pm – 9am | Largest with Fin |
NH: June – September SH: December – March |
| Koi | 4,000 | Pond | 4pm – 9am | Large |
Both Hemispheres: All Months |
| Mitten Crab | 2,000 | River | 4pm – 9am | Small |
NH: September – November SH: March – May |
| Nibble Fish | 1,500 | River | 4pm – 9am | Smallest |
NH: May – September SH: November – March |
| Saddled Bichir | 4,000 | River | 9pm – 4am | Large |
NH: June – September SH: December – March |
| Saw Shark | 12,000 | Sea | 4pm – 9am | Largest with Fin |
NH: June – September SH: December – March |
| Snapping Turtle | 5,000 | River | 9pm – 4am | Very Large |
NH: April – October SH: October – April |
| Soft-Shelled Turtle | 3,750 | River | 4pm – 9am | Large |
NH: August – September SH: February – March |
| Stringfish | 15,000 | Clifftop River | 4pm – 9am | Very Large |
NH: December – March SH: June – September |
This fearsome-looking fish can be found out at sea during night hours.
SEA CREATURES
There are 40 deep-sea dwellers to find in total in New Horizons. 12 of these can be found at night. They can only be reached by deep-sea diving using a diving costume. Like fish, each creature has a different-sized shadow. You won’t know what you’ve got until you’ve caught it though. Deep-sea creatures are different to fish in that they have different movement patterns. The number of bubbles they emit also vary. Some deep-sea dwellers are fast, so you’ll have to not only be quick but also crafty when going after them.
| Name | Selling Price | Time | Shadow Size | Swimming Pattern | Month |
| Abalone | 2,000 | 4pm – 9am | Medium | Moderate Steady Movement |
NH: June – January SH: January – July |
| Chambered Nautilus | 1,800 | 4pm – 9am | Medium | Slow |
NH: March – June / September – November SH: March – May / September – December |
| Firefly Squid | 1,400 | 9pm – 4am | Very Small | Slow |
NH: March – June SH: September – December |
| Flatworm | 700 | 4pm – 9am | Very Small | Slow Short Movement |
NH: August – September SH: February – March |
| Horseshoe Crab | 2,500 | 9pm – 4am | Medium | Quick Short Lunges |
NH: July – September SH: January – March |
| Mantis Shrimp | 2,500 | 4pm – 9am | Small | Quick Short Lunges |
Both Hemispheres: All Months |
| Sea Pig | 10,000 | 4pm – 9am | Small | Quick Long Lunges |
NH: November – February SH: May – August |
| Slate Pencil Urchin | 2,000 | 4pm – 9am | Medium | Moderate Steady Movement |
NH: May – September SH: November – March |
| Spiny Lobster | 5,000 | 9pm – 4am | Large | Quick |
NH: October – December SH: April – June |
| Sweet Shrimp | 1,400 | 4pm – 9am | Small | Slow |
NH: September – February SH: March – August |
| Tiger Prawn | 3,000 | 4pm – 9am | Small | Moderate Steady Movement |
NH: June – September SH: December – March |
| Vampire Squid | 10,000 | 5pm – 9am | Medium | Quick Long Lunges |
NH: May – August SH: November – February |
This tiny shrimp can be found in the deep sea after dark.
That concludes all the bugs, fish, and sea creatures you can find at night-time. It’s important to note that some wildlife can be found all hours, day and night. This makes finding night-time-exclusive wildlife more difficult, but with persistence, they’ll make their appearance.
