Common Name
Striped Anchovy
Year Described
Linnaeus, 1758
Identification
Dorsal Fin: 13-16
Anal Fin: 20-24
Pectoral Fin:
Gill Rakers: 19-25
Vertebrae:
Lateral Line Scales: 37-43
Body elongate and laterally compressed. Body depth 19-22% TL. Snout conical and 3/4 eye diameter in length. Mouth very large and inferior. Maxilla tip extends well over preoperculum (to edge). Teeth small. Suborbital bone slightly larger than eye diameter. Pseudobranch shorter than eye diameter (does not reach onto operculum). Dorsal fin origin a little past midpoint of body with a concave rear margin. Pectoral fin long, low and falls well short of pelvic fin (less than eye diameter). Pelvic fin midway between anal and pectoral fin base. Pelvic fin with seven rays. Anal fin origin under rear half of dorsal fin. Caudal fin forked. Anus closer to anal fin than pelvic fin base. Scales cycloid and deciduous. Lateral line absent.
Color
Body translucent with a dusky back. Side with a wide (about 3/4 eye diameter) silvery stripe that does not narrow significantly. Fins clear.
Size
Maximum size to 125mm TL. Commonly to 90mm TL.
Habitat
A coastal species found in both brackish and marine waters. Can tolerate fairly low salinity. Schooling.
Range
New England to eastern Florida, the northern Gulf of Mexico, and from Venezuela to S. Brazil. Not found in the Caribbean.
References
Hildebrand, S.F. 1964. Engraulidae and Clupeidae (pp. 152-454). In: Fishes of the Western North Atlantic. Mem. Sears Fnd. Mar. Res. 1 (Vol. 3): 1-630.
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.
Other Notes
Replaced by Anchoa colonensis in the Caribbean Sea.