Spirinchus starksi, Night smelt : fisheries, gamefish

Spirinchus starksi (Fisk, 1913)

Night smelt
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Spirinchus starksi   AquaMaps   Data sources: GBIF OBIS
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Image of Spirinchus starksi (Night smelt)
Spirinchus starksi
Picture by Fritzsche, R.A./J.W. Cavanagh

Classification / Names Common names | Synonyms | Catalog of Fishes(genus, species) | ITIS | CoL | WoRMS | Cloffa

Teleostei (teleosts) > Osmeriformes (Freshwater smelts) > Osmeridae (Smelts)
Etymology: starksi: Named after E.C. Starks, U.S. ichthyologist (Ref. 6885).
Eponymy: Edwin Chapin Starks (1867–1932) was an American ichthyologist who was an authority on the osteology of fish. [...] (Ref. 128868), visit book page.

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

Marine; benthopelagic; depth range ? - 128 m (Ref. 96339). Temperate; 60°N - 34°N, 144°W - 120°W

Distribution Territories | FAO areas | Ecosystems | Occurrences | Point map | Introductions | Faunafri

Northeast Pacific: southeastern Alaska to Point Arguello in central California, USA.

Size / Weight / Age

Maturity: Lm ?  range ? - ? cm
Max length : 23.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 2850); max. reported age: 3.00 years (Ref. 56049)

Short description Identification keys | Morphology | Morphometrics

Dorsal spines (total): 0; Dorsal soft rays (total): 8 - 10; Anal spines: 0; Anal soft rays: 15 - 19; Vertebrae: 60 - 64. In males, pectoral fins longer; tuberculate on head, scales, and lower fins (Ref. 6885). Green with silvery sides (Ref. 6885).

Biology     Glossary (e.g. epibenthic)

Feeds on small shrimp-like crustaceans (Ref. 4563). Caught during the spawning season (Ref. 2850).

Life cycle and mating behavior Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae

Oviparous (Ref. 35792). Spawns in the surf at night (Ref. 2850).

Main reference Upload your references | References | Coordinator | Collaborators

Eschmeyer, W.N., E.S. Herald and H. Hammann, 1983. A field guide to Pacific coast fishes of North America. Boston (MA, USA): Houghton Mifflin Company. xii+336 p. (Ref. 2850)

IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435: Version 2025-2 (Global))

Not Evaluated 

CITES

Not Evaluated

CMS (Ref. 116361)

Not Evaluated

Threat to humans

  Harmless





Human uses

Fisheries: commercial; gamefish: yes
FAO - Publication: search | FishSource |

More information

Trophic ecology
Food items (preys)
Diet composition
Food consumption
Food rations
Predators
Ecology
Ecology
Population dynamics
Growth parameters
Max. ages / sizes
Length-weight rel.
Length-length rel.
Length-frequencies
Mass conversion
Recruitment
Abundance
Life cycle
Reproduction
Maturity
Maturity/Gills rel.
Fecundity
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Spawning aggregations
Eggs
Egg development
Larvae
Larval dynamics
Distribution
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FAO areas
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Occurrences
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BRUVS - Videos
Anatomy
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Physiology
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Nutrients
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Swimming type
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Visual pigments
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Toxicity (LC50s)
Genetics
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Ciguatera cases
Stamps, coins, misc.
Outreach
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Taxonomy
Common names
Synonyms
Morphology
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References
References

Tools

E-book | Field guide | Length-frequency wizard | Life-history tool | Point map | Catch-MSY |

Special reports

Check for Aquarium maintenance | Check for Species Fact Sheets | Check for Aquaculture Fact Sheets

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Summary page | Point data | Common names | Photos

Internet sources

AFORO (otoliths) | Aquatic Commons | BHL | Cloffa | Websites from users | Check FishWatcher | CISTI | Catalog of Fishes: genus, species | DiscoverLife | ECOTOX | FAO - Publication: search | Faunafri | Fishipedia | Fishtrace | GloBI | Google Books | Google Scholar | Google | IGFA World Record | OceanAdapt | OneZoom | Open Tree of Life | Otolith Atlas of Taiwan Fishes | PubMed | Reef Life Survey | Socotra Atlas | TreeBase | Tree of Life | Wikipedia: Go, Search | World Records Freshwater Fishing | Zoological Record

Estimates based on models

Phylogenetic diversity index
(Ref. 82804) 		PD50 = 0.6250 [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight a=0.00372 (0.00180 - 0.00765), b=3.17 (2.99 - 3.35), in cm total length, based on LWR estimates for this (Sub)family-body shape (Ref. 93245).
Trophic level
(Ref. 69278) 		3.5   ±0.50 se; based on food items.
Resilience
(Ref. 120179) 		High, minimum population doubling time less than 15 months (tmax=3).
Fishing Vulnerability
(Ref. 59153) 		Low vulnerability (16 of 100). 🛈
Price category
(Ref. 80766) 		Low.