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Species: Atherina harringtonensis, Reef Silverside

All Families:   All Genera:   All Species:

silver stripe: front wide
slender: body depth 14% SL
pectoral I,10
lower lip: no projecting teeth
A edge straight
breast and throat scaled, but not bases D&A

Atherina harringtonensis Goode, 1877

Reef Silverside

Slender, body depth 14% SL, elongate, compressed at rear; belly rounded; eye large (~ 1/3 head length, equal to snout length); head relatively narrow (width 55% of head length), deep, upper profile relatively straight; bony ridge on each side of snout; mouth oblique, top jaw not extendable, extending back past front edge of eye, front (premaxilla) bone with rear end narrow and pointed (not expanded), and with a bony process above its center; lower jaw with prominent elevation at rear (its height > 1/3 jaw length); teeth small, simple, inconspicuous, in bands on jaws, none on tongue; no forward projecting teeth on front of lower jaw; gill rakers long, slender, 24 or more; 1st dorsal V-VI spines, well in front of anal; 2nd dorsal I, 8-10, origin over or just behind anal origin; pectoral i,10; anal I, 11-12, about same length as 2nd dorsal, margin of fin straight; pelvic 2/3 length of pectoral, which is > ¾ length of head; scales small, 42-45 on lateral line, 6 rows above lateral line; breast and throat scaled; bases of dorsal and anal fins not scaled.

Greenish white on back, silvery with bluish reflections below; moderate silver stripe (covering 3rd row of scales down from top plus edges of two adjacent rows) bordered above by an iridescent blue-green line, from gill opening to tail, at front silver stripe is nearly as wide as pectoral fin base; tips of tail dusky.

Size: 10 cm.

Habitat: shallow protected coastal bays and lagoons, and around reefs.

Depth: 0-20 m?

Bermuda to the S Caribbean.


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Salinity
  • Brackish
  • Marine
Inshore/Offshore
  • Inshore
  • Inshore Only
Water Column Position
  • Near Surface
  • Surface
  • Water column only
Habitat
  • Water column
  • Estuary
  • Mangrove
  • Reef associated (reef + edges-water column & soft bottom)
FishBase Habitat
  • Pelagic
  • Reef Associated
Feeding Group
  • Carnivore
  • Data
  • Planktivore
Diet
  • Data
  • Zooplankton
  • Pelagic fish larvae
Egg Type
  • Benthic
  • Data
  • Pelagic larva
Global Endemism
  • All species
  • Greater Caribbean endemic
  • West Atlantic Endemic
Regional Endemism
  • Continent
  • Continent + Island (s)
  • GC endemic
  • Island (s)
  • All species
Residency
  • Resident
Climate Zone
  • Equatorial (0-10N, Costa Rica / Venezuela)
  • Subtropical (23-35N, Florida / Carolinas / Bermuda)
  • Tropical (10-23N, Nicaragua / Cuba)
IUCN Red List
  • Least concern
  • Listed
CITES
  • Not listed
Length Max
  • 10
Depth Range Min
  • 0
Depth Range Max
  • 20