South American pilchard (Sardinops sagax)

Scientific name: Sardinops sagax Jenyns, 1842

The South American pilchard (Sardinops sagax) is a marine fish of the family Clupeidae. In the aquarium it needs water at 9–21°C (48–70°F).

South American pilchard care at a glance

Temperature: 9–21°C (48–70°F)

Biology

Neritic. A coastal species that forms large schools. Occur at temperatures ranging from 16? to 23?C in summer and from 10? to 18?C in winter. Feed mainly on planktonic crustaceans. Young fish feed on zooplankton such as copepod and adults on phytoplankton. Oviparous, with pelagic eggs, and pelagic larvae. Possibly can live up to 25 years. In the California region, pilchards make northward migrations early in summer and travel back south again in autumn. With each year of life, the migration becomes farther. Marketed fresh, frozen or canned. Utilized mainly for fish meal; but also eaten fried and broiled. Main source of landing: NE Pacific: Mexico.

Source: FishBase, licensed CC BY-NC 4.0.

Species facts

Scientific name: Sardinops sagax
Family: Clupeidae (Herrings, shads and sardines)
Order: Clupeiformes (Herrings)
Class: Actinopterygii (Ray-finned fishes)
Maximum length: 39.5
Common length: 20.0
Depth range: 0–200 m (0–656 ft)
Environment: Marine; pelagic-neritic; oceanodromous; depth range 0 - 200 m
Climate: Subtropical
Distribution: Indo-Pacific: southern Africa to the eastern Pacific. Three lineages were confirmed through cluster and parsimony analyses of haplotypic divergences: southern Africa (ocellatus) and Australia (neopilchardus); Chile (sagax) and California (caeruleus); and, Japan (melanostictus).
Conservation status (IUCN): Not Evaluated
Threat to humans: Harmless
Uses: Fisheries: highly commercial; bait: usually
Resilience: Medium, minimum population doubling time 1.4 - 4.4 years (K=0.45; tm=2; tmax=13-25; Fec=10,000)

Sources

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

Last updated 27 September 2026