Clupea harengus

(Linnaeus, 1758)

Vernacular names
English : Atlantic herring
French : Hareng Atlantique

Classification
Class : Teleostei
Order : Clupeiformes
Family : Clupeidae
Notes : No subspecies known.

Identification
Adults can reach a maximum length of 40 cm for a weight of 1.1 kg. Elongated cylindrical body with big mouth. Coloration silvery with a strong blue tinge on back. No dark spots on fins or body.

Range and habitat
Western Atlantic from Greenland to South Carolina, East Atlantic from Iceland to French coasts and east to Baltic sea and Spitsbergen. Lives in open waters and shallower waters near shores, down to 300 meters deep.

Conservation
IUCN RED LIST : LEAST CONCERN
CITES : Not Listed
Status : One of the most commercially important fish species. Population crashed because of overfishing in the 1970s but is now recovering and increasing.
Ex-Situ Programs : None known

Observation

 

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