Thrissina mystica, Hata, Lavoue, Psomadakis, Osmany & Motomura, 2025

Freyhof, JÖrg, Yoğurtçuoğlu, Baran, Jouladeh-Roudbar, Arash & Kaya, Cüneyt, 2025, Handbook of Freshwater Fishes of West Asia, De Gruyter : 74

publication ID

https://doi.org/10.1515/9783111677811

DOI

https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17819578

persistent identifier

https://treatment.plazi.org/id/C85F87D2-FFFD-FFB6-2885-FCCEFC1DF842

treatment provided by

Felipe

scientific name

Thrissina mystica
status

 

Thrissina mystica View in CoL

Common name. Balam.

Diagnosis. Distinguished from T. whiteheadi by: ● 3–16 gill rakers on lower limb of first gill arch / ● 34–40 branched anal rays. Size up to 270 mm SL.

Distribution. From Persian Gulf east to south India. In Shatt al Arab/Arvand, Hammar Marsh, and up to Nasiriyah on Euphrates.

Habitat. Pelagic in coastal waters, entering freshwaters.

Biology. Spring visit to Hammar Marsh and presence of juveniles suggest spawning in brackish waters. Two spawning peaks, one in December–January and one in March– April. Feeds on a wide variety of planktonic invertebrates, fish larvae, and small fish.

Conservation status. LC.

Remark. Usually identified as T. hamiltonii , or as T. malabarica . Thrissina malabarica occurs in East Asia.

Further reading. Carpenter et al. 1997 (identification, distribution); Hata et al. 2021 (redescription). Hata et al. 2023 ( T. malabarica ); Hata et al. 2023 (as T. malabarica ); Hata et al. 2025 ( Thrissina mystica ).

Thrissina whiteheadi ; Dammam, Saudi Arabia; 205 mm SL. © J. Randall,Bishop Museum.

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Chordata

Order

Clupeiformes

Family

Engraulidae

Genus

Thrissina

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