The great sand eel (''Hyperoplus lanceolatus'') is the greater species of sand eel. The maximum size is .

Description

The great sand eel has an elongated body, with a rounded cross section. It has a long, pointed

head A head is the part of an organism which usually includes the ears, brain, forehead, cheeks, chin, eyes, nose, and mouth, each of which aid in various sensory functions such as sight, hearing, smell, and taste. Some very simple animals may ...

, and a protruding lower jaw. Its upper jaw, however, is not protrusible, and this species is unable to form a tube with its mouth. A monocle "tooth-shaped" structure can be found at the front of the palate. The scales on the body cannot form a chevron pattern. The skin ridge running the length of the sides of the body, spread as far as one-third of the base of the

anal fin Fins are distinctive anatomical features composed of bony spines or rays protruding from the body of a fish. They are covered with skin and joined together either in a webbed fashion, as seen in most bony fish, or similar to a flipper, as se ...

. Low and long set dorsal fins consist of 52 to 61 rays. The anal fin is about half the size of the dorsal fin, and taller. The pectoral fins are diminutive; the pelvic fins are absent. Color ranges from a lime color on the back and upper sides to the bright silver on the lower sides and the

belly Belly may refer to: Anatomy * The abdomen, the part of the body between the pelvis and the thorax; or the stomach ** A beer belly, an overhang of fat above the waist, presumed to be caused by regular beer drinking ** Belly dance * The fleshy, cent ...

. Also, a specific black smudge occurs between the eyes and the

snout A snout is the protruding portion of an animal's face, consisting of its nose, mouth, and jaw. In many animals, the structure is called a muzzle, rostrum, or proboscis. The wet furless surface around the nostrils of the nose of many mammals is c ...

, which is about the same size as the diameter of the eye. The great sand eel can be distinguished from the

lesser sand eel The lesser sand eel or sand lance (''Ammodytes tobianus'') is a species of fish in the sand lance family Ammodytidae. It is an elongated cylindrical fish which may be up to long. Description The body of the lesser sand eel has an elongated sh ...

because the origin of its long dorsal fin is located behind the level of the pectoral fin. Corbin's sand eel (''Hyperoplus immaculatus'') is very similar to the greater sand eel in the way that it lacks a protrusible upper jaw and its similar size. However, it can be distinguished by the lack of the black spot on the snout, but it does have a black chin. Its dorsal fin has 59 to 62 rays. The overall color is darker than the other sand eels, it is found offshore, and tends to be found more on the western side of the United Kingdom

Biology

Breeding occurs between March and August. It feeds on plankton, fish larvae, and a vast range of crustaceans.

Distribution and habitat

The great sand eel is native to the eastern North Atlantic from Murmansk (70°N) and

Spitzbergen Svalbard ( , ), also known as Spitsbergen, or Spitzbergen, is a Norwegian archipelago in the Arctic Ocean. North of mainland Europe, it is about midway between the northern coast of Norway and the North Pole. The islands of the group range ...

(75°N) southwards to Portugal (38°N) including Iceland and the Baltic Sea. It has not been recorded from the Mediterranean Sea or the Barents Sea. It is to be found from the low water mark down to over , typically over clean and sandy substrates.

Ecology

Sand eels form an important part of the diet of many sea birds. Excessive fishing of sand eels on an industrial scale in the North Sea has been linked to a decline in the breeding success of kittiwakes, terns, fulmars, and shags.

References

External links

Pictures of the Greater Sand-eel

{{Taxonbar, from=Q1351670 great sand eel Fish of the North Sea Fish of the Baltic Sea great sand eel