Teleostei (teleosts) >
Clupeiformes (Herrings) >
Clupeidae (Herrings, shads, sardines, menhadens)
Etymology: Potamalosa: Greek, potamos = river + Latin, alausa = a fish cited by Ausonius and Latin, halec = pickle, dealing with the Greek word hals = salt; it is also the old Saxon name for shad = "alli" ; 1591 (Ref. 45335).
Eponymy: This is a toponym referring to Richmond River, New South Wales, Australia, the type locality. (Ref. 128868), visit book page.
More on author: Macleay.
Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range
Ecology
Marine; freshwater; brackish; pelagic-neritic; catadromous (Ref. 51243). Temperate; 32°S - 39°S, 139°E - 151°E (Ref. 188)
Oceania: Endemic to southeastern Australia.
Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm ? range ? - ? cm
Max length : 32.0 cm SL male/unsexed; (Ref. 44894); common length : 15.0 cm SL male/unsexed; (Ref. 44894); max. reported age: 11 years (Ref. 6996)
Dorsal spines (total): 0; Dorsal soft rays (total): 12 - 18; Anal spines: 0; Anal soft rays: 16 - 27. Body fairly elongate, belly keeled, with 16 to 18 + 14 or 15 scutes; about 14 dorsal scutes with low keel from head to dorsal fin origin. Minute or no teeth in jaws; second supra-maxilla slender. Branchiostegal rays 8. Anal fin origin far behind dorsal fin base. Juveniles resemble Hyperlophus, which has a deeper second supra-maxilla, only 4 branchiostegal rays and i 6 pelvic fin rays.
It occurs in clear, moderately fast-flowing streams, as well as in quiet backwaters, estuaries, and in the sea ( Ref. 5259, 44894). Also found in sluggish lowland rivers (Ref. 44894). A schooling species and appears diadromous. A fast swimming, shoal-forming species. Nothing much is known of its biology, although it may have a catadromous life cycle. Downstream migration to estuaries, presumably for spawning, has been reported in winter months (July-August). Feeds on worms, small crustaceans and insects (Ref. 44894). Breeds in estuaries in July to August. Taken in nets during the spawning season; will also take bait.
Life cycle and mating behavior
Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae
Whitehead, P.J.P., 1985. FAO Species Catalogue. Vol. 7. Clupeoid fishes of the world (suborder Clupeoidei). An annotated and illustrated catalogue of the herrings, sardines, pilchards, sprats, shads, anchovies and wolf-herrings. FAO Fish. Synop. 125(7/1):1-303. Rome: FAO. (Ref. 188)
IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435: Version 2024-1)
Threat to humans
Harmless
Human uses
Fisheries: subsistence fisheries
Tools
Special reports
Download XML
Internet sources
Estimates based on models
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref.
82804): PD
50 = 1.0000 [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.00525 (0.00331 - 0.00832), b=3.24 (3.10 - 3.38), in cm total length, based on LWR estimates for this species & (Sub)family-body (Ref.
93245).
Trophic level (Ref.
69278): 3.3 ±0.43 se; based on food items.
Resilience (Ref.
120179): Low, minimum population doubling time 4.5 - 14 years (K=0.13; tmax=11).
Fishing Vulnerability (Ref.
59153): Low to moderate vulnerability (29 of 100).
