candlefish, also called eulachon, species of smelt of the genus Thaleichthys (q.v.).

What is a candlefish?

: a very oily anadromous marine food fish (Thaleichthys pacificus) of the smelt family that occurs along the North Pacific coast. — called also eulachon.

Are hooligan and smelt the same fish?

The real name for these little critters is eulachon. They have lots of other common names in in the Northwest – in our part of Alaska we call them hooligan, or even 'hoolies'. They're a type of smelt, and their numbers vary quite a bit from year to year.