Japanese sardinella
Sardinella zunasi (Bleeker, 1854)
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
Sardinella zunasi (Japanese sardinella or Japanese scaled sardine) is a species of ray-finned fish in the family Clupeidae, the herrings and sardines. It is native to the northwestern Pacific Ocean, where it occurs near shore along the Asian coastlines from southern Japan to Taiwan.
This fish is usually around 10 centimeters long at maturity. It is usually slender, but its body shape is somewhat variable.
This marine fish lives in schools in coastal waters, and can sometimes be found in bays. Some populations are known to overwinter in the Yellow Sea. In the spring, it spawns in the open ocean and in semi-enclosed shoreline habitat. The eggs hatch in about 36 hours. The larvae are adaptable to a wide range of temperatures and salinities.
Studies of its mitochondrial DNA reveal that the species is divided genetically into three main lineages. The split may have occurred when two populations were isolated from the main one by low sea levels during glaciation events.
Wikipedia contributors, Sardinella zunasi; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T07:41:04.804466+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Sardinella zunasi (Bleeker, 1854)
- Name authority
- (Bleeker, 1854)
- Common name
- Japanese sardinella
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Teleostei
- Order
- Clupeiformes
- Family
- Dorosomatidae
- Genus
- Sardinella
- Extinction status
- Not supplied by this source
Source habitat flags: Marine: yes · Freshwater: no · Terrestrial: no. These do not form a complete habitat description.
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- gigaclassActinopterygii
- superclassActinopteri
- classTeleostei
- orderClupeiformes
- suborderClupeoidei Bleeker, 1859
- familyDorosomatidae Gill, 1861
- genusSardinella Valenciennes, 1847
- speciesSardinella zunasi (Bleeker, 1854)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Sardinella. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Sardinella brasiliensis (Steindachner, 1879) | DorosomatidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| fringescale sardinellaSardinella fimbriata (Valenciennes, 1847) | DorosomatidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| sind sardinellaSardinella sindensis (Day, 1878) | DorosomatidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| blacktip sardinellaSardinella melanura (Cuvier, 1829) | DorosomatidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| East African sardinellaSardinella neglecta Wongratana, 1983 | DorosomatidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| goldstripe sardinellaSardinella gibbosa (Bleeker, 1849) | DorosomatidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Sardinella electra Hata & Motomura, 2019 | DorosomatidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Sardinella lintriculus Schwarzhans, 2019 | DorosomatidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extinct |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Harengula zunashi Bleeker, 1854 Bleeker, 1854 | synonym |
| Sardinella zunasis (Bleeker, 1854) (Bleeker, 1854) | synonym |
| Harengula zunasi Bleeker, 1854 Bleeker, 1854 | synonym |
| Clupea zunasi (Bleeker, 1854) (Bleeker, 1854) | synonym |
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=272277 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:79MKL. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.