Anchoa delicatissima (Girard, 1854)
Slough anchovy
Anchoa delicatissima
photo by FAO

Family:  Engraulidae (Anchovies), subfamily: Engraulinae
Max. size:  12 cm TL (male/unsexed); max. reported age: 3 years
Environment:  pelagic-neritic; brackish; marine; depth range 0 - 50 m
Distribution:  Eastern Central Pacific: Belmont Shores, Long Beach Harbor, California, USA south to Magdalena Bay on the Pacific coast of Baja California; not in Gulf of California.
Diagnosis:  Dorsal spines (total): 0-0; Anal spines: 0-0; Anal soft rays: 20-25. Body fairly elongate. Snout moderate, about 3/4 eye diameter; maxilla moderate, tip pointed, reaching onto inter-operculum, but not to edge of gill cover; gill cover canals of walkeri-type. Anal fin moderate, its origin usually somewhat before midpoint of dorsal fin base. A silver stripe along flank, about 3/4 eye diameter.
Biology:  Reportedly common in estuaries and backwaters of bays and occasionally near shores outside bays (Ref. 6792). The fifth most abundant fish taken by various gear in Newport Bay, California; a midwater schooling species caught in bag seine hauls mainly in July and September (Ref. 6361). Oviparous, with planktonic eggs and larvae (Ref. 35602).
IUCN Red List Status: Least Concern (LC); Date assessed: 18 October 2019 Ref. (130435)
Threat to humans:  harmless


Source and more info: www.fishbase.org. For personal, classroom, and other internal use only. Not for publication.