Nematalosa galatheae Nelson & Rothman, 1973
Galathea gizzard shad
Nematalosa galatheae
photo by FAO

Family:  Dorosomatidae (Gizzard shads and sardinellas)
Max. size:  16.3 cm SL (male/unsexed)
Environment:  pelagic-neritic; freshwater; brackish; marine, anadromous
Distribution:  Indo-West Pacific: southwest coast of India, presumably Bay of Bengal, off Andaman Sea coast of Thailand, Penang, Gulf of Thailand, Singapore and Viet Nam.
Diagnosis:  Dorsal spines (total): 0-0; Anal spines: 0-0; Anal soft rays: 17-26. Belly with 25 to 30 total scutes. Anterior arm of pre-operculum with the third infra-orbital bone immediately above it, no fleshy gap between. Lower jaw strongly flared outward. A pair of grooves in the spongy skin on top of head, converging posteriorly. Pectoral axillary scale present; hind edge of scales not toothed; a dark spot after gill opening followed by smaller spots on flank.
Biology:  Inhabits marine waters, but enters (and presumably breeding in) freshwater (Ref. 4832). A filter-feeder. More data needed.
IUCN Red List Status: Least Concern (LC); Date assessed: 02 March 2017 Ref. (130435)
Threat to humans:  harmless


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