The topsmelt silverside is a small, slim fish with a dorsally flattened body which can grow up to a total length of 37 centimetres (15 in). It has two separate dorsal fins on its bright green back which contrasts with the silver to pale flanks and silvery underside.[3] This species has a pointed head with small eyes and a rather rounded, blunt snout and an oblique mouth situated terminally with extendible jaws each equipped with a row of tiny forked teeth.[4] Their gills are a golden-yellow.[5] It has no lateral line but it has 63-65 scales where the lateral line would have been present. The first dorsal fine has 5-9 spines, the second dorsal fin has a single spine and 8-14 rays while the anal fin also has a single spine but has 19-25 rays and the pectoral fin has 13 rays. The juveniles are translucent and have three rows of pigmented scales on their back, becoming scattered on the caudal peduncle.[3]
The topsmelt silverside is a pelagic schooling fish which occurs in a wide variety of habitats at different times of the year. It is a common species in estuaries but it has also been recorded along the oceanic shoreline and in kelp forests, off sandy beaches, and sometimes in offshore waters. They can frequently be found in and around man-made structures such as pier pilings. They are frequently observed just below the surface and are most frequently found in the upper 9 metres (30 ft). During spring and summer months many of these fish move into estuaries while in the autumn and winter they move to more open coastlines where there are bays, rocky areas, and beds of kelp. They can tolerate higher salinities than seawater and have been recorded inhabiting in salt evaporation ponds,[6] as high as 80 ppt.[3]
The topsmelt silverside spawn in the warmer months, starting in March and ending in October, preferring to spawn where the salinity is around 30 ppt and the temperature ranges between 13–27 °C (55–81 °F).[3] These fish prefer to spawn at night over submerged vegetation.[7] After hatching in deeper water the larvae may move up the estuary. Juveniles, less than a year old, are the most frequent age class to occur in freshwater environments and as they age they move downstream towards more estuarine environments. The juveniles feed on zooplankton but the adults are more benthic foragers[3] and food items can include algae, chironomid larvae and amphipods, the presence of sand and gravel in the stomach contents being taken to be an indicator of bottom feeding.[7] This species is often recorded leaping out of the water to escape pursuit larger predatory fishes such as mackerel or jacks.[6]
External linksedit
^Iwamoto, T.; Eschmeyer, W.; Smith-Vaniz, B.; Alvarado, J. (2010). "Atherinops affinis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2010: e.T183957A8206260. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2010-3.RLTS.T183957A8206260.en. Retrieved 20 November 2021.
^ abFroese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.) (2019). "Atherinops affinis" in FishBase. April 2019 version.
^ abcde"Topsmelt". California Fish Website. University of California, Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources. Retrieved 19 June 2019.
^"Topsmelt". Mexico - Fish, Birds, Crabs, Marine Life, Shells and Terrestrial Life. John Snow. Retrieved 19 June 2019.
^Johnston, K.I.; Medel, S.; Anderson, E.; Stein, C.; Whitcraft & J. Crooks (2015). California Estuarine Wetland Monitoring Manual (Level 3). The Bay Foundation for the United States Environmental Protection Agency. p. 297.
^ ab"Topsmelt". Aquarium of the Pacific. Retrieved 19 June 2019.
^ abPeter Moyle (2002). Inland Fishes of California: Revised and Expanded. University of California Press. pp. 311-312. ISBN0520227549.
Photos of Topsmelt silverside on Sealife Collection
January 01, 1970
topsmelt, silverside, topsmelt, silverside, atherinops, affinis, also, known, topsmelt, species, neotropical, silverside, native, eastern, pacific, ocean, conservation, status, least, concern, iucn, scientific, classification, domain, eukaryota, kingdom, anima. The topsmelt silverside Atherinops affinis also known as the topsmelt is a species of Neotropical silverside native to the eastern Pacific Ocean Topsmelt silverside Conservation status Least Concern IUCN 3 1 1 Scientific classification Domain Eukaryota Kingdom Animalia Phylum Chordata Class Actinopterygii Order Atheriniformes Family Atherinopsidae Subfamily Atherinopsinae Tribe Atherinopsini Genus AtherinopsSteindachner 1876 Species A affinis Binomial name Atherinops affinis Ayres 1860 Synonyms 2 Atherinopsis affinis Ayres 1860 Atherinops insularum Gilbert 1891 Atherinops magdalenae Fowler 1903 Atherinops oregonia Jordan amp Snyder 1913 Atherinops littoralis Hubbs 1918 Atherinops cedroscensis Hubbs 1918 Atherinops guadalupae Hubbs 1918 Contents 1 Description 2 Distribution 3 Habitat and biology 4 External linksDescription editThe topsmelt silverside is a small slim fish with a dorsally flattened body which can grow up to a total length of 37 centimetres 15 in It has two separate dorsal fins on its bright green back which contrasts with the silver to pale flanks and silvery underside 3 This species has a pointed head with small eyes and a rather rounded blunt snout and an oblique mouth situated terminally with extendible jaws each equipped with a row of tiny forked teeth 4 Their gills are a golden yellow 5 It has no lateral line but it has 63 65 scales where the lateral line would have been present The first dorsal fine has 5 9 spines the second dorsal fin has a single spine and 8 14 rays while the anal fin also has a single spine but has 19 25 rays and the pectoral fin has 13 rays The juveniles are translucent and have three rows of pigmented scales on their back becoming scattered on the caudal peduncle 3 Distribution editThe topsmelt silverside is found in the eastern Pacific along the western coast of North America from Vancouver Island in British Columbia south to Baja California and the Gulf of California 2 Habitat and biology editThe topsmelt silverside is a pelagic schooling fish which occurs in a wide variety of habitats at different times of the year It is a common species in estuaries but it has also been recorded along the oceanic shoreline and in kelp forests off sandy beaches and sometimes in offshore waters They can frequently be found in and around man made structures such as pier pilings They are frequently observed just below the surface and are most frequently found in the upper 9 metres 30 ft During spring and summer months many of these fish move into estuaries while in the autumn and winter they move to more open coastlines where there are bays rocky areas and beds of kelp They can tolerate higher salinities than seawater and have been recorded inhabiting in salt evaporation ponds 6 as high as 80 ppt 3 The topsmelt silverside spawn in the warmer months starting in March and ending in October preferring to spawn where the salinity is around 30 ppt and the temperature ranges between 13 27 C 55 81 F 3 These fish prefer to spawn at night over submerged vegetation 7 After hatching in deeper water the larvae may move up the estuary Juveniles less than a year old are the most frequent age class to occur in freshwater environments and as they age they move downstream towards more estuarine environments The juveniles feed on zooplankton but the adults are more benthic foragers 3 and food items can include algae chironomid larvae and amphipods the presence of sand and gravel in the stomach contents being taken to be an indicator of bottom feeding 7 This species is often recorded leaping out of the water to escape pursuit larger predatory fishes such as mackerel or jacks 6 External links edit Iwamoto T Eschmeyer W Smith Vaniz B Alvarado J 2010 Atherinops affinis IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2010 e T183957A8206260 doi 10 2305 IUCN UK 2010 3 RLTS T183957A8206260 en Retrieved 20 November 2021 a b Froese Rainer Pauly Daniel eds 2019 Atherinops affinis in FishBase April 2019 version a b c d e Topsmelt California Fish Website University of California Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources Retrieved 19 June 2019 Topsmelt Mexico Fish Birds Crabs Marine Life Shells and Terrestrial Life John Snow Retrieved 19 June 2019 Johnston K I Medel S Anderson E Stein C Whitcraft amp J Crooks 2015 California Estuarine Wetland Monitoring Manual Level 3 The Bay Foundation for the United States Environmental Protection Agency p 297 a b Topsmelt Aquarium of the Pacific Retrieved 19 June 2019 a b Peter Moyle 2002 Inland Fishes of California Revised and Expanded University of California Press pp 311 312 ISBN 0520227549 Bay Area and Delta Topsmelt Photos of Topsmelt silverside on Sealife Collection Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Topsmelt silverside amp oldid 1128093662, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
