Common Name
Florida Round Herring
Year Described
Jordan & Gilbert, 1884
Identification
Dorsal Fin: 9-13
Anal Fin: 12-15
Pectoral Fin: 11-12
Pelvic Fin: 8
Vertebrae: 38-39
Lateral Line Scales: 33-37
Gill Rakers: 20-24 lower (first arch in adults)
Body cylindrical in cross-section. Snout long (>eye diameter) . Mouth barely reaches anterior of orbit. Teeth present on triangular premaxilla. Isthmus broadly triangular (straight sided) No scutes on ventral surface. Scute anterior to pelvic fin W-shaped. Branchiostegal rays number 6-7. Dorsal fin single and at midbody. Pelvic fin under dorsal fin. Anal fin far back on body and small. Tail forked. Body fully scaled.
Color
Body pale translucent with a greenish sheen. A bright silvery lateral stripe (about half eye diameter) narrows anteriorly near gill cover.
Size
Maximum size to 75mm SL.
Habitat
Coastal pelagic in shallow water. Forms large schools.
Range
Scattered records off Florida, the Bahamas, and in the Caribbean Sea (Honduras, Nicaragua to Venezuela). Range not completely known.
References
McEachran, J.D. & J.D. Fechhelm. 1998. Fishes of the Gulf of Mexico. Volume 1: Myxiniformes to Gasterosteiformes. University of Texas Press, Austin. i-viii + 1-1112.
Munroe, T.A. & M.S. Nizinski. 2002. Clupeidaeidae (pp 804-830). In: Carpenter. 2002. The living marine resources of the Western Central Atlantic. Vol. 2: Bony fishes part 1 (Acipenseridae-Grammatidae). FAO Species Identification Guides for Fisheries Purposes. American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists Special Publication No. 5.
Other Notes
Jenkinsia is closest in appearance and size to anchovies (Engraulidae) but can be distinguished by having much smaller mouths, smaller eyes, and a pelvic fin origin before the dorsal origin.
This species and J. parvula share premaxillary teeth and a straight-sided isthmus without shoulders, but can be distinguished by the shape of their lateral band.