Northern Anchovy
Thryssa Hamiltonii
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Quick Facts
Distribution
- The Northern Anchovy is a slim, silvery fish that can grow to about 27 cm long. Most live fast, short lives and are thought to rarely make it past four years of age.
- In Australia, it is found across the tropical north, particularly around the Arafura Sea and the northern coastline. Its range stretches much further through the warm Indo-Pacific, from the Persian Gulf east to Myanmar and Taiwan, and south to Papua New Guinea.
- This is a fish that likes to stay close to the coast. It usually swims near the surface in shallow water and will also move into estuaries, where rivers meet the sea.
- Northern Anchovies are thought to travel in schools, moving together through coastal waters. Grouping up is a common strategy among small fish that share their world with larger predators.
- Young Northern Anchovies feed on small prey such as prawns, tiny shrimp-like animals, worms and small crustaceans. Even as juveniles, they are active hunters working through the water column.
- They begin breeding at around 16 to 17 cm long, meaning they do not need to reach their full size before becoming adults.
- One useful clue for recognising this species is the dark patch just behind the upper part of the gill cover. It can help separate the Northern Anchovy from other similar-looking anchovies in the same waters.
- Run your eye along its belly and there is another clue: a row of hard, ridged scales forms a small keel-like edge underneath the fish.
- Its snout tips slightly upward, sitting at or above the level of the upper eye. This gives the head a subtly raised profile that sets it apart from some of its close relatives.
- Despite its small size, the Northern Anchovy likely plays a solid part in the coastal food web. Fish like this are meals for larger fish, seabirds and other marine predators.
- Northern Anchovy can spawn repeatedly through the year, with females producing thousands of eggs at a time. The eggs are fertilised externally and left to develop without any parental care.
- There is still plenty to learn about Northern Anchovies in Australian waters. Compared with many more familiar species, this little anchovy has received relatively little scientific attention.
Species Interaction
Hamilton's Thryssa: A Small Fish Carrying a Big Load
- Ecosystem Role
- Research & Rare Encounters
Hamilton’s Thryssa (also known as the Northern Anchovy) is not a targeted recreational or commercial species in its own right, but it quietly underpins much of what people value about coastal and estuarine fisheries in northern Australia. As a forage fish, it sits at the base of the food web, feeding on zooplankton and being eaten in turn by commercially and recreationally important predators, seabirds and marine mammals. Related anchovy species are harvested commercially and used as aquaculture feed and bait in southern Australian fisheries, though species-specific data for Thryssa hamiltonii in Australia is limited.
Scientific Classification
- Kingdom: Animalia
- Phylum: Chordata
- Class: Actinopterygii
- Order: Clupeiformes
- Family: Engraulidae
- Genus: Thryssa
- Species: Thryssa hamiltonii
Conservation Status
The Northern Anchovy is listed as Least Concern by the IUCN (2018 assessment), with no current listing under Australia’s EPBC Act. The species occurs across the tropical western Indo-Pacific, including northern Australian coastal waters, and faces no documented major conservation pressures at this time.
Interaction Highlights
Ecosystem
Schools of this anchovy form a key food source for seabirds and marine mammals.
Research
Sparse occurrence records make this a poorly documented species in Australian waters.
How to catch
Northern Anchovy
Catch Difficulty: Easy
Tackle: Bait jig / sabiki rig, Float rig, Cast net
Bait: Bread, Worms
Technique: Cast near schooling fish, Berley to attract fish, Drift bait naturally through the water
Popularity: Mostly caught as bycatch
