Anchovy

Belly with 5 to 7 small needle-like pre-pelvic scutes. Maxilla tip pointed, reaching to hind border of pre-operculum, the latter almost always convex, rounded. Pelvic fin tips only rarely reaching to below dorsal fin origin. Numerous black spots below level of eye and on tip of lower jaw, by which it is generally distinguished from other species; a dark patch behind occiput.

Oceanodromous. Migrating within oceans typically between spawning and different feeding areas, as tunas do. Migrations should be cyclical and predictable and cover more than 100 km.

Dorsal spines (total): 0; Analspines: 0; Analsoft rays: 18 - 20

A schooling species found in coastal waters, pelagic.

A pelagic, schooling species found in coastal waters. Caught mainly with seines (beach and purse), traps often using light, incidentally with bottom trawls. Marketed fresh, dried, dried-salted or made into fish meal, fish sauce fish balls and used as bait (Ref. 9822).

fisheries: commercial