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Alosa pseudoharengus (Wilson, 1811)

Alewife
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Native range | All suitable habitat | Point map | Year 2050
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Alosa pseudoharengus   AquaMaps   Data sources: GBIF OBIS
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Image of Alosa pseudoharengus (Alewife)
Alosa pseudoharengus
Picture by Scarola, J.F.


United States (contiguous states) country information

Common names: Alewife, Bigeye herring, Branch herring
Occurrence: native
Salinity: freshwater
Abundance: abundant (always seen in some numbers) | Ref: Page, L.M. and B.M. Burr, 2011
Importance: minor commercial | Ref: FAO, 1994
Aquaculture: | Ref:
Regulations: | Ref:
Uses: no uses
Comments: Known from the Atlantic coast from Maine to South Carolina (Ref. 86798). Present in the continental shelf waters off the northeastern United States (Ref. 37512, 10294). Introduced elsewhere, including New River in West Virginia and Virginia, and upper Tennessee River system in Tennessee (Ref. 86798). Virtually all streams tributary to Chesapeake Bay; also found in Virginia, Delaware, and New Jersey (Ref. 4639). Usually abundant, although dams obstruct migrations (Ref. 86798). Also Ref. 188, 27549, 93252, 10294.
National Checklist:
Country Information: https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/resources/the-world-factbook/geos/us.html
National Fisheries Authority: http://www.nmfs.gov
Occurrences: Occurrences Point map
Main Ref: Page, L.M. and B.M. Burr, 2011
National Database:

Common names from other countries

Classification / Names Nomi Comuni | Sinonimi | Catalog of Fishes(Genere, Specie) | ITIS | CoL | WoRMS | Cloffa

> Clupeiformes (Herrings) > Alosidae (Shads and Sardines)
Etymology: Alosa: Latin, alausa = a fish cited by Ausonius and Latin, halec = pickle, dealing with the Greek word hals = salt; it is also the old Saxon name for shad = "alli" ; 1591 (Ref. 45335);  pseudoharengus: From the words pseudo, meaning false and harengus, meaning herring (Ref. 10294).

Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range Ecologia

marino; acqua dolce; salmastro; anadromo (Ref. 51243); distribuzione batimetrica 5 - 145 m (Ref. 4639), usually 56 - 110 m (Ref. 5951).   Temperate; 55°N - 34°N, 93°W - 53°W (Ref. 86798)

Distribuzione Stati | Aree FAO | Ecosystems | Presenze | Point map | Introduzioni | Faunafri

North America: Atlantic coast from Red Bay, Labrador in Canada to South Carolina in USA; many landlocked populations exist. Individuals with access to ocean are anadromous, ascending coastal rivers during spring spawning migraitons. Native to Lake Ontario; introduced into other Great Lakes via Welland Canal (first taken in Lake Erie in 1931). Introduced elsewhere, including New River in West Virginia and Virginia, and upper Tennessee River system in Tennessee, USA.

Length at first maturity / Size / Peso / Age

Maturity: Lm ?, range 11 - ? cm
Max length : 40.0 cm SL maschio/sesso non determinato; (Ref. 7251); common length : 30.0 cm SL maschio/sesso non determinato; (Ref. 7251); peso massimo pubblicato: 200.00 g (Ref. 7251); Età massima riportata: 9 anni (Ref. 72462)

Short description Chiavi di identificazione | Morfologia | Morfometria

Spine dorsali (totale) : 0; Spine anali: 0. Moderately compressed, belly with a distinct keel of scutes. Lower jaw rising steeply within mouth; minute teeth present at front of jaws (disappearing with age). Lower gill rakers increasing with age. A dark spot on shoulder. Distinguished from A. aestivalis by its silvery peritoneum; eye larger than snout length; back greyish green on capture.

Biologia     Glossario (es. epibenthic)

Occurs in open water over all bottom types (Ref. 86798). Movement of schooling adults apparently restricted to coastal areas proximal to natal estuaries (Ref. 4639). They migrate up rivers and even small streams to spawn in lakes and quiet stretches of rivers, then return to sea shortly after spawning (Ref. 4639); landlocked populations also ascend affluent rivers and streams. Larvae remain in vicinity of spawning grounds, forming schools at sizes less than 10 mm TL, within one to two weeks after hatching (Ref. 4639), then descend in summer and autumn or even as late as November or December. Feed on shrimps and small fishes; the young on diatoms, copepods and ostracods while in rivers. Utilized fresh, dried or salted, smoked and frozen; eaten fried (Ref. 9988). Also used for crab and lobster bait and sometimes for pet food (Ref. 9988). Parasites found are Acanthocephala, cestodes, trematodes and copepods. Overfishing, pollution and impassable dams cause the decline of stocks (Ref. 37032).

Life cycle and mating behavior Maturities | Riproduzione | Spawnings | Egg(s) | Fecundities | Larve

Adults migrate up rivers and even small streams, spawn in lakes and quiet stretches of rivers; landlocked populations also ascend affluent rivers and streams; the fry descend in summer and autumn or even as late as November or December. Spawning activity has been observed both diurnally and nocturnally, but with greatest activity at night (Ref. 38797). Spawning activity stops above 27.8°C (Ref. 38881). Freshwater populations mature earlier and at a smaller average size than saltwater populations (Ref. 4639).

Main reference Upload your references | Bibliografia | Coordinatore | Collaboratori

Whitehead, P.J.P., 1985. FAO Species Catalogue. Vol. 7. Clupeoid fishes of the world (suborder Clupeoidei). An annotated and illustrated catalogue of the herrings, sardines, pilchards, sprats, shads, anchovies and wolf-herrings. FAO Fish. Synop. 125(7/1):1-303. Rome: FAO. (Ref. 188)

IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435)

  Least Concern (LC) ; Date assessed: 01 March 2012

CITES (Ref. 128078)

Not Evaluated

CMS (Ref. 116361)

Not Evaluated

Threat to humans

  Harmless




Human uses

Pesca: commerciale; esca: occasionally
FAO(pesca: production; publication : search) | FishSource | Sea Around Us

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Estimates based on models

Preferred temperature (Ref. 115969): 0.5 - 10.4, mean 3.3 (based on 86 cells).
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref. 82804):  PD50 = 0.5000   [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.00724 (0.00622 - 0.00844), b=3.01 (2.97 - 3.05), in cm Total Length, based on LWR estimates for this species (Ref. 93245).
Trophic level (Ref. 69278):  3.4   ±0.3 se; based on diet studies.
Resilienza (Ref. 120179):  Medio, tempo minimo di raddoppiamento della popolazione 1.4 - 4.4 anni (K=0.2; tm=3.6; Fec=2,180).
Fishing Vulnerability (Ref. 59153):  Low to moderate vulnerability (29 of 100).
Climate Vulnerability (Ref. 125649):  High to very high vulnerability (67 of 100).
Price category (Ref. 80766):   Low.