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Fish4Life provides everything you need to enjoy seafood responsibly. Explore information and practical tips for safe and sustainable seafood consumption, and help protect marine life by reporting undersized or illegally traded seafood.

Big-scale sand-smelt
Atherina boyeri
Αθερίνα

Sustainability Status

Currently considered sustainable

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Help us protect our seas by reporting illegal or undersized fish that you see in markets, restaurants or fishing boats
Good choice – Consumption of this species is currently considered sustainable

Legal

Minimum Size

5cm

Prohibited Consumption Period

–

Sustainable

Minimum Size

6cm

Avoid Consumption Period

March – July

Advice for Consumption

Consumption of this species is currently considered sustainable. Greek legislation does not establish a closed season for this species, leaving both juvenile and spawning fish completely unprotected. Choose responsibly by respecting sustainable size limits and avoiding consumption during the breeding season.

Archipelagos Tips

Choosing larger, mature fish helps reduce fishing pressure on juvenile individuals.

Common names

FR

Athérine

it

Latterino

es

Pejerrey

tr

Gümüş balığı

pt

Peixe-rei-do-Mediterrâneo

nl

Kleine koornaarvis

de

Boyers Ährenfisch

toxicity

This species is safe to consume.

iucn info

Least concern (LC)

Description

Silvery-brown body, darker on the dorsal part, bronze reflections on flanks. The head length is about four times less than its total length. It has 2 dorsal fins and large eyes. The lateral line appears silver. It looks like Atherina presbyter (Mediterranean sand smelt) due to their similar morphology and anatomy.

Did you know?

The specific name of boyeri comes from a Medieval poet and scientist, Guillaume Boyer!

Ecological Aspects

Diet

Hyperbenthivorous/Zooplanktivorous: planktonic crustaceans, mysids, planktonic larvae and copepods.

habitat

Demersal. Live close to the seabed (the benthic zone) and depend strongly on it, but are not necessarily fixed to it.

Max size & depth range

Max length : 20.0 cm Max weight: 12 g Depth range: 1 – 50 m

breeding & Growth

Some populations undergo spawning migrations into estuaries. Mature individuals are fractional spawners, larger individuals spawn for a longer period. Growth Rate: slow-moderate (k = 0.27yr⁻¹)

Longevity & presence

Lifespan: 1 to 2 years, rarely up to 4 years. Max reported age: 4 years. Distribution: Portugal, Spain and throughout the Mediterranean and Black Sea. Isolated populations on coasts of England and the Netherlands.

appearance changes

Mainly ontogenetic, with some variation linked to habitat (freshwater, brackish, marine). Juveniles are more transparent or semi-translucent body. In the adult stage, they have a more silvery body with a distinct lateral band.

Reproductive Cycle

Total seasonal fecundity generally ranges from 300 to 3,000 eggs depending on the fish’s age and size. They reproduce 4 to 6 times per season, spawning continuously every 1 to 2 weeks over an extended breeding period.
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If you’d like to learn more about the work of the Archipelagos Institute of Marine Conservation, please visit our website: https://archipelago.gr/

Good choice – Consumption of this species is currently considered sustainable

Illegal species – Fishing, selling and consumption of this species is illegal

Fishstocks – Declining due to overexploitation

Think before you eat – This species faces increasing pressures and should only be consumed responsibly

Bad choice – Consumption of this species is unsustainable

Health concerns –
Can accumulate dangerously high levels of toxic substances harmful to health

Alien / Invasive – This species is not from this region and can have a negative impact on the ecosystem and threaten local biodiversity, so it is sustainable to eat

Aquafarms – You will commonly find this species coming from aquafarms