Amblygaster sirm

Spotted sardinella
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Clupeiformes
Family: Dorosomatidae
Genus: Amblygaster
Species:
A. sirm
Binomial name
Amblygaster sirm
(Walbaum, 1792)
Synonyms[2]
  • Clupea harengus sirm Walbaum, 1792
  • Clupea sirm Walbaum, 1792
  • Sardinella sirm (Walbaum, 1792)
  • Ambligaster sirm Walbaum, 1792
  • Sardinella leiogastroides Bleeker, 1854
  • Clupea pinguis Günther, 1872
  • Sardinops dakini Whitley, 1937

Amblygaster sirm, the spotted sardinella, also known as the northern pilchard, spotted pilchard, spotted sardine, and trenched sardine, is a reef-associated marine species of sardinellas in the herring family Clupeidae.

Location

It is one of the three species of genus Amblygaster.[3] It is found in the marine waters along Indo-West Pacific regions from Mozambique to the Philippines, and towards north Taiwan and Japan[1] to the far east of Australia[4] and Fiji.[1][3]

Appearance

Live specimen with golden spots (left), spots becomes black after dead (right).

The fish has 13 to 21 dorsal soft rays and 12 to 23 anal soft rays. It grows up to a maximum total length of 27 cm (11 in). The distinctive feature of spotted sardinella from other two relatives is the presence of 10 to 20 golden spots along the flank. The color of spots may change into black after preservation. Belly is less rounded and scutes are not prominent.[5]

Diet

The fish feeds on minute organisms like copepods, larval bivalves and aquatic gastropods, and dinoflagellates like Peridinium and Ceratium.[5][3]

Human uses

The fish is present in fisheries throughout its range. It is often used as bait.[1] It is a widely captured commercial fish in Sri Lanka, where the fish is known as "Hurulla" in Sinhala language.[6]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d Di Dario, F. (2017). "Amblygaster sirm". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2017: e.T98470734A98845366. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2017-3.RLTS.T98470734A98845366.en. Retrieved 16 May 2024.
  2. ^ "Synonyms of Amblygaster sirm (Walbaum, 1792)".
  3. ^ a b c Whitehead, Peter J.P. (1985). FAO species catalogue. Vol. 7. Clupeoid fishes of the world. An annotated and illustrated catalogue of the herrings, sardines, pilchards, sprats, anchovies and wolfherrings. Part 1 – Chirocentridae, Clupeidae and Pristigasteridae. FAO Fisheries Synopsis. Vol. 125/7/1. Rome: FAO. pp. 88–89. ISBN 978-92-5-102340-2.
  4. ^ "Spotted Sardine, Amblygaster sirm (Walbaum 1792)". Fishes of Australia. Museums Victoria. Retrieved 2015-07-13. Archived 2015-07-13 at the Wayback Machine
  5. ^ a b Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.). "Amblygaster sirm". FishBase. February 2024 version.
  6. ^ "Size related changes in fat content and fatty acid composition of Amblygaster sirm (Spotted sardinella, Hurulla)" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-07-13. Retrieved 2015-07-13.

Further reading