Texas Gulf Coast Fishing

Atlantic Silverside

ATLANTIC SILVERSIDE Menidia menidia

Description: Maximum total length is about 6" Anal soft-rays: 23-26. The Atlantic silverside is a long, slender, and thin-bodied fish with two dorsal fins, translucent gray green above, a rounded white belly, and large scales with smooth margins. The caudal fin is moderately forked It has a short head with large eyes and a small oblique mouth. The top of the head, nose, and chin are dusky gray. Along each side, from the pectoral fin to its caudal fin, is a distinct silver band outlined by a narrow black stripe. Silversides resemble anchovies, differing mainly by a smaller mouth.
Habitat: Atlantic silversides congregate in large schools that usually consist of similar-sized fish. They are found along the shore, often within a few feet of the water's edge. The silverside is commonly found in brackish waters where bayous,creeks, and rivers meet the bays and gulf, swimming among the submerged grasses. They are rarely found in water deeper than a few feet in summer, but will descend to greater depths in the winter to avoid the cold temperatures of the water, with some individuals traveling as far as the waters of the continental shelf.
Remarks: Atlantic silverside is one of most common and abundant small fishes found in the bays and is ecologically valuable as forage for other fishes. For fishermen, they are used and an indicator for presence of larger sport fish: flocks of birds hovering and diving usually indicate the presence of silversides as baitfish being fed upon by a school of speckled trout.