Atherina

Atherina boyeri

Atherina or sand ink are a small fish genus of Old World silversides, which are found in shoals in the eastern Atlantic and the Mediterranean.

Features

The fish of the genus Atherina have an elongated, slender body with a clearly visible sideband. The eye is about as big as the mouth is long. The largest species are up to 20 centimeters long.

Occurrence and life

Sand ink can be found as in the Black and Caspian Sea in the Atlantic Ocean from South Africa to the Kattegat and in the Mediterranean. Individual populations also live in the North Sea.

They inhabit as schooling fish the coastal area and the offshore islands, in the Mediterranean sea frequently near lagoons and estuaries of the rivers. They feed on plankton, small crustaceans and fish larvae.

The breeding season of the fish enough in the colder regions from spring to summer.

System

In the genus five species are summarized:

• Atherina boyeri Risso, 1810
• Atherina breviceps Valenciennes, 1835
• Atherina hepsetus Linnaeus, 1758
• Atherina lopeziana Rossignol & Blache, 1961
• Atherina presbyter Cuvier, 1829

Economic Importance

These small ears fish are caught in masses and processed differently: to fish meal, dried as dog and cat food, or as bait for fishing. In the Mediterranean sand ink are also eaten fried.