Anchovy

Size / Weight / Age
Max length : 20.0 cm SL male/unsexed; (Ref. 189); common length : 14.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 5504); max. reported age: 3 years

Dorsal spines (total): 0; Anal spines: 0. Body elongate, slender, and rounded in cross section; snout long and prominent; lower branch of first gill arch with 34 to 49 gill rakers; anal fin with fewer than 22 rays, located behind dorsal fin base; body shiny blue or green (Ref. 55763). There is a silver stripe along flank in juveniles which disappears with age. The high number of gill rakers distinguishes it from all Pacific species of Anchoa.

Occurs mainly within 80 km of coast, forming huge schools, chiefly in surface waters. A filter-feeder entirely dependent on the rich plankton of the Peruvian Current. In some studies, diatoms constituted as much as 98% of the diet. Large populations of guano birds and pelicans also depend on this fish (Ref. 9988). Utilized as fish meal and oil (Ref. 9988).