Japanese anchovy (Engraulis japonicus)

Scientific name: Engraulis japonicus Temminck & Schlegel, 1846

Japanese anchovy (Engraulis japonicus)

The Japanese anchovy (Engraulis japonicus) is a marine fish of the family Engraulidae. In the aquarium it needs water at 8–30°C (46–86°F).

Japanese anchovy care at a glance

Temperature
8–30°C (46–86°F)

Biology

Occurs in large schools near the surface, mainly in coastal waters but as far out as over 1,000 km from the shore. Tends to move more northward and inshore in spring and summer. Juveniles associate with drifting seaweed. Feeds on copepods, but also on other small crustaceans, molluscan larvae, fish eggs and larvae and diatoms. Marketed fresh and salted, processed into fishmeal and oil.

Source: FishBase, licensed CC BY-NC 4.0.

Species facts

Scientific name
Engraulis japonicus
Family
Engraulidae (Anchovies)
Order
Clupeiformes (Herrings)
Class
Actinopterygii (Ray-finned fishes)
Maximum length
18.0
Common length
14.0
Depth range
0–400 m (0–1312 ft)
Environment
Marine; pelagic-neritic; oceanodromous; depth range 0 - 400 m
Climate
Temperate
Distribution
Western Pacific: southern Sakhalin Islands, Sea of Japan and Pacific coasts of Japan, and south to almost Canton/Taiwan; rare records (seems to represent stray fishes) off the coasts of Luzon and Western Mindanao, Philippines and from Manado and Ujung Pandang, Sulawesi, Indonesia.
Conservation status (IUCN)
Not Evaluated
Threat to humans
Reports of ciguatera poisoning
Uses
Fisheries: highly commercial; aquaculture: commercial; bait: usually
Resilience
High, minimum population doubling time less than 15 months (K=1.05; tm=1-2; tmax=3)

Sources

Taxonomy, distribution and biology data: FishBase (Froese, R. and D. Pauly, eds.), licensed CC BY-NC 4.0.

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