Common Name
Trinidad Anchovy
Year Described
Fowler, 1915
Identification
Dorsal Fin: 13-14
Anal Fin: 26-30
Pectoral Fin: 13-14
Gill Rakers: 15-19 upper, 18-22 lower
Vertebrae: 41
Lateral Line Scales: 38-42
Body elongate and laterally compressed. Body quite deep compared to congeners. Snout conical and about half eye diameter in length. Mouth very large and inferior. Maxilla tip extends well over preoperculum (to edge). Teeth small. Suborbital bone slightly longer 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 reaches base of pelvic fin. Pelvic fin equally distant from pectoral and anal fin. Pelvic fin with seven rays. Anal fin origin under middle of dorsal fin. Caudal fin forked. Anus closer to pelvic fin base than anal fin origin. Scales cycloid and deciduous. Lateral line absent.
Color
Body translucent with a blue-green back. Dark speckles on fin bases. Sides with a narrow (about half eye diameter) silvery stripe that does not narrow significantly. Fins clear.
Size
Maximum size to 140mm TL.
Habitat
Inshore coastal marine waters and mangrove swamps. Schooling.
Range
Colombia to Trinidad.
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.