Printer friendly. Herring have a blue-green upper body with silvery sides and are devoid of markings. The body is laterally compressed and the scales along the underside project in a slightly serrated arrangement. Scales are large and easily removed. Their tails are deeply forked and they lack adipose fins. These fish may grow to 18 inches in length, but a 9-inch specimen is considered large. Their blue-green upper body, large scales, and large eyes help distinguish them from other silver fish species of similar size.
Pacific herring are sexually mature at 3—4 years of age and spawn every year after reaching maturity. Spawning occurs in the spring in shallow, vegetated areas in intertidal and subtidal zones.
Males and females release their milt and eggs into the water column where they mix and fertilize. The eggs are adhesive and attach to vegetation or the bottom substrate. Eggs hatch about two weeks after fertilization and the young larvae drift and swim in the ocean currents. Once the larvae undergo metamorphosis into their juvenile stage, they rear in sheltered bays and inlets.
In the fall, the schools of juveniles move to deeper water where they will spend the next years. They will remain separate from the adult population until they are mature. Clupea harengus. Bank herring, shore herring, common herring, sardines. Throughout the North Atlantic Ocean. Pelagic to coastal in cold to temperate waters. Filter feeder. Order Clupeiformes herring , Family Clupeidae herrings, shads, sardines, menhadens.
Small but mighty, Atlantic herring are one of the most abundant fish in the ocean and are often found gathered together in large schools. Some schools of herring have been estimated to contain several billion fish! They are silvery fish with a blueish iridescence found all throughout the North Atlantic Ocean and are socially, culturally and economically important to humans.
They are a migratory species, demonstrating both seasonal migrations, coming inshore from the open ocean for spawning and over-wintering purposes; and temporal migrations, spending daytime in deeper waters and coming up to the surface to feed at night. Small and silver in colour, Atlantic herring have a classic streamlined shape, with a round belly, forked tail and a protruding lower jaw. They are a schooling fish, often found grouped together in large numbers.
Typically, herring grow to a maximum of 44 centimetres in length and a maximum weight of only grams. Learn what else makes this species so interesting, below. These fish live primarily in pelagic or coastal waters. In pelagic habitats, they swim through the open ocean in large schools.
Scientists estimate that in pelagic habitats they swim as far as ft. They also range into coastal seas, or areas close to the coast of the land. Most breeding occurs in coastal regions.
Though you can find various species worldwide, the Atlantic species lives primarily in the Atlantic Ocean. It lives from the coastal regions of northern Europe, across to Greenland, and down the coast of North America.
Their range also extends into the frigid waters on the edges of the Arctic. This species is a carnivore, which means that it eats other animals.
More specifically, it is a planktivore, which means that it feeds on tiny microorganisms. Some common prey items include fish eggs, fish larvae, copepods, krill, shrimp, snail larvae, and other tiny creatures. Humans have hunted this species, both recreationally and commercially, for hundreds of years.
Some people eat these fish, while others use them as bait, and many use them as food for other animals, including those in zoos and aquariums. They have large populations and swift reproductive rates. However, it is important to remember that this fish species is quite sensitive to pollution.
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