| Synonyms
| | | | Clupea dentex Schneider, 1801:428. | | | Esox chirocentrus Lacepède, 1803:296. | | | Chirocentrus hypselosoma Bleeker, 1852:71. | | | Chirocentrus dorab Whitehead et al, 1966:27, (Bleeker's C. hypselosoma); Luther, 1968:194; Whitehead, 1973b:167, fig. 2; SFSA, in press (southern Africa). |
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| FAO Names | | En - Dorab wolf-herring, Fr - Chirocentre dorab, Sp - Arencón dorab. |
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3Alpha Code: DOB Taxonomic Code: 1211100201 |
| Scientific Name with Original Description | | | Clupea dorab Forsskål, 1775, Descr.Anim.: xiii, 7 (Djedda and Mocha, Red Sea). |
| Diagnostic Features
| | | The slightly shorter pectoral fin (11 to 13% of standard length; cf. 13 to 18%) and the black marking of the upper part of the dorsal fin are the only satisfactory characters separating this species from C. nudus; there is also some black on the anterior part of the anal fin.
Variations in body depth may represent sexual dimorphism, but this needs study.
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| Geographical Distribution | |
| | Probably throughout the warmer coastal waters of the Indo-Pacific, from the Arab Gulf, Red Sea, east African coast south to Durban, eastward to Japan, the Philippines and south to northern Australia. However, it is not known to what extent C. nudus may contribute to these records. |
| Habitat and Biology | | Pelagic,inshore fishes.Feeds mainly on small fishes, but perhaps also crustaceans, etc.
No precise information on breeding.
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| Size | | | To about 100 cm of standard length. |
| Interest to Fisheries | | Separate statistics for Chirocentrus (almost certainly including a proportion of C. nudus) are reported by Tanzania, Pakistan, India, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and the Philippines, with a total of 50 083 t in 1983. The catches in Palk Bay and around Rameswaram I in the Gulf of Mannar (southern India) are the only ones where the two species of Chirocentrus were positively separated (Luther, 1968); C. dorab contributed only 20% to the catch, the rest being C. nudus, caught with gillnets, seines, shallow trawls and traps. The total catch reported for this species to FAO for 1999 was 13 077 t. The countries with the largest catches were Thailand (10 800 t) and Pakistan (2 266 t).
Marketed fresh or frozen.The total catch in 1996 was 11 873 t (Thailand 10 292 t and Pakistan 1 580 t).
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| Local Names | | | INDIA :
Dorab ,
Chela (Calcutta),
Khanda (Calcutta),
Samudrik (Calcutta). |
| RED SEA :
Dorab ,
Samak abu sayf . |
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Bibliography Luther, 1968 (- separation of C. dorab from C. nudus) Whitehead, 1973 (- key to species, synonyms, references) |
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