Australian freshwater herring | |
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Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Actinopterygii |
Order: | Clupeiformes |
Family: | Clupeidae |
Genus: | Potamalosa J. D. Ogilby, 1897 |
Species: | P. richmondia |
Binomial name | |
Potamalosa richmondia (W. J. Macleay, 1879) | |
Potamalosa is a monospecific genus of freshwater ray-finned fish belonging to the family Clupeidae, which includes the anchovies, herrings and sprats. The only species in the genus is Potamalosa richmondia, the Australian freshwater herring. This species is endemic to eastern Australia where it lives in rivers, spawning in estuaries.
Herring are various species of forage fish, mostly belonging to the family of Clupeidae.
Sprat is the common name applied to a group of forage fish belonging to the genus Sprattus in the family Clupeidae. The term also is applied to a number of other small sprat-like forage fish. Like most forage fishes, sprats are highly active, small, oily fish. They travel in large schools with other fish and swim continuously throughout the day.
The Mary River cod is a species of temperate perch native to the coastal Mary River system of southern Queensland, Australia. Mary River cod are one of Australia's most endangered freshwater fishes and are notable for being the most northerly of the four Maccullochella cods found or once found in coastal river systems of eastern Australia.
The Bloomfield River cod or the tropical nightfish, is a species of temperate perch endemic to Australia. It is only found in an 11-km stretch of the Bloomfield River in northern Queensland. These waterfalls appear to have blocked the migration of more aggressive tropical freshwater fish species such as the sooty grunter that have presumably naturally displaced the Bloomfield River cod from its former range in prehistoric times. With its very limited distribution, the Bloomfield River cod is clearly a relict species. It is a very important relict species, however, as it is the most northerly distributed percichthyid species in Australia and raises interesting questions on the biogeography of percichthyid fish in Australia and the history of their ancient colonisation of Australian rivers.
The Indo-Pacific tarpon, also known as the oxeye herring or simply herring due to its superficial resemblance to the true herrings, of which it is not a member, is the smaller of the two species of tarpon and lives in Indo-Pacific waters.
The Australian blacktip shark is a species of requiem shark, in the family Carcharhinidae, endemic to northern and eastern Australia. Favoring the upper and middle parts of the water column, it can be found from the intertidal zone to a depth of 50 m (160 ft). Appearance-wise this species is virtually identical to the common blacktip shark, from which it can be reliably distinguished only by its lower vertebra number and by genetic markers. Generally reaching 1.5–1.8 m (4.9–5.9 ft) in length, it is a fairly stout-bodied, bronze-colored shark with a long snout and black-tipped fins.
Ornithoptera richmondia, the Richmond birdwing, is a species of birdwing butterfly that is endemic to Australia. It is the second smallest of the birdwing species, the smallest being Ornithoptera meridionalis.
The skipjack herring is a North American, migratory, fresh- and brackish water fish species in the herring family Alosidae. The name skipjack shad comes from the fact that it is commonly seen leaping out of the water while feeding. Other common names include blue herring, golden shad, river shad, Tennessee tarpon, and McKinley shad. The skipjack shad is restricted to the Gulf of Mexico drainage basins. Skipjack are found in clear to moderately turbid water in areas with flow. Because they are a migratory species, dams often impede their reproduction. Records suggest that this species was much more abundant in the Upper Mississippi River basin before it was impounded. Currently, skipjack is most abundant in the Upper Mississippi River below the mouth of the Ohio River. They are known as an "early-run" species as they migrate to spawn in the early spring.
The twait shad or twaite shad is a species of fish in the family Alosidae. It is found in the eastern Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea and is an anadromous fish which lives in the sea but migrates into fresh water to spawn. In appearance it resembles an Atlantic herring but has a row of six to ten distinctive spots on its silvery flanks. They become mature when three or more years old and migrate to estuaries, later swimming up rivers to spawn. Populations of this fish have declined due to overfishing, pollution and habitat destruction. Conservation of this species is covered by Appendix III of the Bern Convention and Appendix II and V of the European Community Habitats Directive.
The herring scad, is a common species of tropical marine fish in the jack family Carangidae. The species inhabits the surface waters of coastal regions throughout the Indo-West Pacific region, feeding on a variety of crustaceans and small fishes. It is the largest fish of the scad genus Alepes, growing to a recorded length of 56 cm. The herring scad is identified among the genus Alepes by its more numerous and smaller scutes and the number of gill rakers on the first arch. It is of minor importance to fisheries throughout its range.
An anchovy is a small, common forage fish of the family Engraulidae. Most species are found in marine waters, but several will enter brackish water, and some in South America are restricted to fresh water.
The blueback herring, blueback shad, or summer shad is an anadromous species of herring from the east coast of North America, with a range from Nova Scotia to Florida. Blueback herring form schools and are believed to migrate offshore to overwinter near the bottom.
Gilchristella aestuaria, the Gilchrist's round herring or estuarine round-herring, is a member of the herring family Clupeidae that occurs off the coasts of Southern Africa. It is the only species in its genus, which was named for John Dow Fisher Gilchrist (1866–1926).
The West African pygmy herring is a very small fish, reaching a maximum length of 3 centimetres (1.2 in) SL. It is a member of the herring family Dorosomatidae in the freshwater systems of western and central Africa that includes such species as the Microthrissa royauxi of the Congo River basin and Limnothrissa miodon of Lake Tanganyika. It is the only species of its genus.
Macrochirichthys macrochirus, the long pectoral-fin minnow and giant sword minnow or freshwater wolf-herring, is a species of cyprinid fish found in rivers and lakes in Southeast Asia where it is used as a food fish. It is the only member of its genus. It is predatory and reaches up to 1 m (3.3 ft) in length.
Sardinella tawilis is a freshwater sardine found exclusively in the Philippines. It is the only member of the genus Sardinella known to exist entirely in fresh water. Locally, they are known in Filipino as tawilis.
The black-banded rainbowfish is a species of rainbowfish belonging to the subfamily Melanotaeniidae. The species is endemic to Australia. Importantly, the species is the type species of the genus Melanotaenia.
Microthrissa royauxi, the royal sprat, is a species of pelagic, freshwater fish from the herring family Clupeidae which is found in the Congo River basin in west Africa. It was described in 1902 by the Belgian-British zoologist George Albert Boulenger. It is of limited importance as a food fish in subsistence fisheries and its conservation status is Least Concern.
"Freshwater herring" is a term applied to a wide variety of freshwater fish which resemble herring: