Sand smelt (Atherina presbyter)

Scientific name: Atherina presbyter Cuvier, 1829

Sand smelt (Atherina presbyter)

The Sand smelt (Atherina presbyter) is a brackish-water fish of the family Atherinidae. Native range: Eastern Atlantic, Kattegat (rare) and British Isles to Canary Islands, Mauritania and Cape Verde, also western Mediterranean.

Biology

Dorsal spines (total): 7 - 9; Dorsal soft rays (total): 11-14; Anal spines: 1; Anal soft rays: 14 - 17. Scales in longitudinal series 52-57. Vertebrae 46-52 (Morocco), 49-52 (the Netherlands). No pyloric appendages. A large, characteristic, brilliant silvery stripe running along flanks from head to tail, often outlined in black. No true lateral line. Eye diameter same with snout length.

Source: FishBase, licensed CC BY-NC 4.0.

Species facts

Scientific name
Atherina presbyter
Family
Atherinidae (Silversides)
Order
Atheriniformes (Silversides)
Class
Actinopterygii (Ray-finned fishes)
Maximum length
20.0
Environment
Marine; brackish; pelagic-neritic; oceanodromous
Climate
Subtropical
Distribution
Eastern Atlantic: Kattegat (rare) and British Isles to Canary Islands, Mauritania and Cape Verde, also western Mediterranean.
Conservation status (IUCN)
Not Evaluated
Threat to humans
Harmless
Uses
Fisheries: subsistence fisheries
Resilience
High, minimum population doubling time less than 15 months (K=0.70; tmax=4)

Sources

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

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