Dorosomatidae, Gill, 1861

Freyhof, JÖrg, Yoğurtçuoğlu, Baran, Jouladeh-Roudbar, Arash & Kaya, Cüneyt, 2025, Handbook of Freshwater Fishes of West Asia, De Gruyter : 69

Family Dorosomatidae

Gizzard shads

A large family of about 115 species in 30 genera. They are mostly tropical and subtropical shads, many of them found in coastal waters, entering freshwaters during parts of their life, or even being pure freshwater species such as African Congothrissa , Limnothrissa , and Sierrathrissa . Many species are of high commercial value, especially for artisanal fisheries. Two genera, Nematalosa and Tenualosa , both with a wide distribution range in the Indian Ocean, enter freshwaters in West Asia. Nematalosa nasus and Tenualosa ilisha are reported from the lower parts of the Shatt al Arab/Arvand. Only T. ilisha regularly enters freshwater habitats, while N. nasus is restricted to brackish waters. Both species are included in the identification key of Clupeiformes above.

Tenualosa comprises five species distributed in the subtropical and tropical Indo-Pacific. All species are anadromous or landlocked, with rare reports of resident marine stocks. One species, T. thibaudeaui , is a pure freshwater species endemic to the Mekong. All Tenualosa are highly valued as food fish and provide a livelihood for many, if not millions, of small-scale fisher families. Overfishing is a serious issue throughout their range. However, as this is due mostly to artisanal fisheries, catches are rarely reported accurately, and the extent of the decline of all species might be much underestimated.

The scientific and common names of T. ilisha require some clarification.This species is widely called Hilsa , which is confused with the Kelee shad, Hilsa kelee . Kelee and Hilsa are sympatric in the Gulf of Oman and along the southern coast of the Arabian Peninsula. Kelee enters estuaries, and both species are easily distinguished by the presence of prominent striae on the top of the head in H. kelee (vs. absence in T. ilisha ).

Further reading. Whitehead 1985 (diversity).