Minnow

a fresh-water fish caught chiefly for bait. There are a thousand kinds of minnows. Upward of one hundred varieties are known in the northeastern United States. The common minnows are known to fishermen as shiners. They go in schools, and, for fear of large fishes, keep usually to shallow water. Minnows have no food value. Their place in nature is to serve as food for larger fish. They are introduced in fish ponds for that purpose. See Fish