Slender rainbow sardine
Encyclopedia
The Slender rainbow sardine (Dussumieria elopsoides) is a small, subtropical, salt water fish of the Indian Ocean
and the South China Sea
which was first described by Bleeker
in 1849. Dussumieria hasselti and Dussumieria productissima are synonyms for this same fish. It is a round herring of the family Clupeidae
.
Until the 1980s in the eastern Mediterranean
slender rainbow sardines were frequently confused with the rainbow sardine
(Dussumieria acuta). Wangratana (1980) demonstrated the differences between Dussumieria acuta and Dussumieria elopsoides, while Whitehead (1985) and Randall (1996) showed that Dussumieria elopsoides does occur in the Mediterranean.
The slender rainbow sardine is primarily differentiated from the rainbow sardine, because the slender rainbow sardines do not have tiny radiating striae on the posterior part of their scales. There is some indication that the slender rainbow sardine may tend to have more vertebra than the rainbow sardine.
and the South China Sea
, the slender rainbow sardine is found off shores from Taiwan
and the Philippines
, to northern Australia
, to east Africa
, Madagascar
and into the Red Sea
. The slender rainbow sardine found its way into the Mediterranean
via the Suez Canal
. It is now found in the eastern Mediterranean off the shores from Turkey
to Egypt
. It has been reported as far east in the Pacific as the Solomon Islands
.
, mainly crustacean
and smaller fish. The slender rainbow sardine spawns mainly in spring. Its eggs, and when they hatch the larvae, drift passively until they metamorphose into free-swimming fish.
Some sardines are made into fish meal which is then used as an animal feed or plant supplement. Oil is also extracted for a variety of uses from varnish to cooking oil.
FAO code: CLUP Duss 2
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...
and the South China Sea
South China Sea
The South China Sea is a marginal sea that is part of the Pacific Ocean, encompassing an area from the Singapore and Malacca Straits to the Strait of Taiwan of around...
which was first described by Bleeker
Pieter Bleeker
Pieter Bleeker was a Dutch medical doctor and ichthyologist, famous for his work on the fishes of East Asia – Atlas Ichthyologique des Orientales Neerlandaises – which was published 1862–1877....
in 1849. Dussumieria hasselti and Dussumieria productissima are synonyms for this same fish. It is a round herring of the family Clupeidae
Clupeidae
Clupeidae is the family of the herrings, shads, sardines, hilsa and menhadens. It includes many of the most important food fishes in the world.-Description and biology:...
.
Until the 1980s in the eastern Mediterranean
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...
slender rainbow sardines were frequently confused with the rainbow sardine
Rainbow sardine
The Rainbow Sardine is a bony fish important to aquaculture and commercial fisheries.-Description:The color of the rainbow sardine is iridescent blue with a shiny gold or brass line below, which quickly fades after death; the hind margin of the tail is broadly dark...
(Dussumieria acuta). Wangratana (1980) demonstrated the differences between Dussumieria acuta and Dussumieria elopsoides, while Whitehead (1985) and Randall (1996) showed that Dussumieria elopsoides does occur in the Mediterranean.
Morphology
- Size: 8 cm. to 18 cm.
- Color: silvery on the sides darkening to bluish grey on the back, and lightening to almost white on the underside.
- Shape: The slender rainbow sardine has an elongated body, with round belly and a pointed nose. The single dorsal (back) fin is slightly behind midpoint. The tail fin is heavily forked. The scales are very delicate and are easily detached. Like other sardines it has no lateral line, and no scales on the head.
The slender rainbow sardine is primarily differentiated from the rainbow sardine, because the slender rainbow sardines do not have tiny radiating striae on the posterior part of their scales. There is some indication that the slender rainbow sardine may tend to have more vertebra than the rainbow sardine.
Distribution
Originally restricted to the tropical and subtropical portions of the Indian OceanIndian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...
and the South China Sea
South China Sea
The South China Sea is a marginal sea that is part of the Pacific Ocean, encompassing an area from the Singapore and Malacca Straits to the Strait of Taiwan of around...
, the slender rainbow sardine is found off shores from Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
and the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
, to northern Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, to east Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
, Madagascar
Madagascar
The Republic of Madagascar is an island country located in the Indian Ocean off the southeastern coast of Africa...
and into the Red Sea
Red Sea
The Red Sea is a seawater inlet of the Indian Ocean, lying between Africa and Asia. The connection to the ocean is in the south through the Bab el Mandeb strait and the Gulf of Aden. In the north, there is the Sinai Peninsula, the Gulf of Aqaba, and the Gulf of Suez...
. The slender rainbow sardine found its way into the Mediterranean
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...
via the Suez Canal
Suez Canal
The Suez Canal , also known by the nickname "The Highway to India", is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. Opened in November 1869 after 10 years of construction work, it allows water transportation between Europe and Asia without navigation...
. It is now found in the eastern Mediterranean off the shores from Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
to Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
. It has been reported as far east in the Pacific as the Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands is a sovereign state in Oceania, east of Papua New Guinea, consisting of nearly one thousand islands. It covers a land mass of . The capital, Honiara, is located on the island of Guadalcanal...
.
Habits
The slender rainbow sardine swims in schools and while pelagic it is generally found near shores. It feeds on zooplanktonZooplankton
Zooplankton are heterotrophic plankton. Plankton are organisms drifting in oceans, seas, and bodies of fresh water. The word "zooplankton" is derived from the Greek zoon , meaning "animal", and , meaning "wanderer" or "drifter"...
, mainly crustacean
Crustacean
Crustaceans form a very large group of arthropods, usually treated as a subphylum, which includes such familiar animals as crabs, lobsters, crayfish, shrimp, krill and barnacles. The 50,000 described species range in size from Stygotantulus stocki at , to the Japanese spider crab with a leg span...
and smaller fish. The slender rainbow sardine spawns mainly in spring. Its eggs, and when they hatch the larvae, drift passively until they metamorphose into free-swimming fish.
Economics
Like other sardines the slender rainbow sardine is caught both as a bait fish and for human consumption. Frequently fishermen catch them in shore with a purse seine (an encircling net) and then release them in deeper water where they attract larger fish.Some sardines are made into fish meal which is then used as an animal feed or plant supplement. Oil is also extracted for a variety of uses from varnish to cooking oil.
FAO code: CLUP Duss 2