Classification / Names Common names | Synonyms | Catalog of Fishes (gen., sp.) | ITIS | CoL | WoRMS | Cloffa

Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes) > Clupeiformes (Herrings) > Clupeidae (Herrings, shads, sardines, menhadens) > Dorosomatinae
Etymology: Hilsa: Bangladesh and Bengali local name for a fish.

Environment / Climate / Range Ecology

Marine; freshwater; brackish; pelagic-neritic; anadromous (Ref. 51243); depth range 10 - ? m (Ref. 30573). Tropical, preferred 28°C (Ref. 107945); 25°N - 18°S, 43°E - 155°E (Ref. 54554)

Distribution Countries | FAO areas | Ecosystems | Occurrences | Point map | Introductions | Faunafri

Indo-West Pacific: probably all coasts of Indian Ocean, from Gulf of Oman and Gulf of Aden south to Transkei, South Africa and Madagascar, across the Bay of Bengal, Gulf of Thailand, Java Sea and north to Hong Kong and east to Papua New Guinea and possibly further.

Length at first maturity / Size / Weight / Age

Maturity: L_m 15.0 range ? - ? cm
Max length : 35.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 11228); common length : 16.5 cm SL male/unsexed; (Ref. 188)

Short description Morphology | Morphometrics

Dorsal spines (total): 0; Dorsal soft rays (total): 16-19; Anal spines: 0; Anal soft rays: 21 - 23. Top of head with numerous fronto-parietal striae; upper jaw with median notch. gill rakers about 100 to 175, those on inner arches distinctly curled; outer row of gill filaments on first arch not more than half length of gill rakers. A series of small triangular scales above axil of pectoral fin; hind part of body scales perforated. A black spot behind gill opening; usually 10 along flank.

Found in coastal waters (Ref. 30573), enters estuaries and able to tolerate quite low salinities (7 ppt). Feeds chiefly on phytoplankton (mainly diatoms, also dinoflagellates), but also copepods, molluscan and crustacean larvae, prawns, amphipods and polychaetes. Spawns (at least in Godavari estuary) around February (Ref. 188). Marketed fresh, dried, dried-salted and boiled. Made into fish balls. Found in the basin-wide mainstream of the lower Mekong (Ref. 36667).

Life cycle and mating behavior Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae

Main reference Upload your references | References | Coordinator | Collaborators

Whitehead, P.J.P., 1985. FAO Species Catalogue. Vol. 7. Clupeoid fishes of the world (suborder Clupeioidei). An annotated and illustrated catalogue of the herrings, sardines, pilchards, sprats, shads, anchovies and wolf-herrings. FAO Fish. Synop. 125(7/1):1-303. Rome: FAO. (Ref. 188)

IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 115185)

Not Evaluated

CITES (Ref. 94142)

Not Evaluated

Threat to humans

Harmless

Human uses

Fisheries: highly commercial; bait: occasionally

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Internet sources

Hilsa kelee (Cuvier, 1829)