ExploreFish

Pacific Herring

Clupea harengus pallasi

The Pacific Herring is a small fish with a shiny body that swims in the Pacific Ocean. They are known for their tasty flavor!

Habitat: Pacific Ocean

Appearance

The Pacific Herring has a slender, torpedo-shaped body with a dark blue-green back and brilliant silvery sides. It lacks scales on its head and has a deeply forked tail, making it appear sleek and quick underwater.

KingdomAnimaliaPhylumChordataClassActinopterygiiOrderClupeiformesFamilyClupeidaeGenusClupea

Pacific Herring

Interesting facts

Herring eggs are incredibly sticky and can coat entire seabeds during spawning!

Pacific Herring communicate by releasing gas from their anuses – essentially, they 'fart'!

Their tiny scales were once collected and used to make artificial pearls sparkle.

They are sometimes called 'silver of the sea' due to their shiny scales and abundance.

Special abilities

Pacific Herring can gather in massive schools because of their strong social bonds that helps them confuse predators.

Pacific Herring has excellent hearing that helps them detect approaching predators and communicate with their schoolmates.

Pacific Herring can lay tens of thousands of sticky eggs quickly that helps them ensure many survive and attach to surfaces.

Measurements & details

Length: 15-30 cm
Weight: 0.1-0.5 kg
Lifespan: 5-15 years
Swim Speed: 25 km/h
Max Depth: 200 m
Water Type: Saltwater

Diet & Feeding

Pacific Herring are filter-feeders, mostly eating tiny ocean critters and plants.

Age differences: Young herring eat smaller zooplankton; adults consume a wider range of larger plankton.

Primary Foods

copepods
euphausiids (krill)
amphipods
diatoms
larval fish

Foraging Method

Filter Feeding

Ecological connections

eats

Orca

Orcinus orca

Orcas hunt herring schools for energy.

eats

Harbor Seal

Phoca vitulina

Harbor seals are common predators of Pacific Herring.

eats

Arctic Tern

Sterna paradisaea

Terns dive into schools to catch these silvery fish.

eats

Chinook Salmon

Oncorhynchus tshawytscha

Many salmon species rely on herring for food.

eaten by

Pacific Krill

Euphausia pacifica

Herring filter-feed on krill and other tiny ocean critters.

Traits

Wildlife

Step into the incredible world of wild animals and plants living freely in nature. From tiny insects to towering trees, it's all part of the wild wonders around us!

Filter Feeder

Discover amazing animals that filter their food right from the water! They have special ways to strain tiny bits of plants or other creatures to eat.

Piscivorous

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Aquatic

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Marine

Dive into the vast, salty waters of the ocean, teeming with an incredible diversity of life, from tiny plankton to giant whales! It's a watery wonderland.