Salema Porgy

The salema porgy has a moderately slender, neatly oval body which has a depth which fits into its standard length 2.8 times. The dorsal fin is supported by 11 spines and 14 or 15 soft rays while the anal fin contains 3 spines and between 13 and 15 soft rays. There are scales on the cheeks under the eyes. There is a scaly sheath at the base of the anal fin but the area between the eyes, the base of the anal fin and the flange of the preoperculum are scaleless. There is a single row of notched incisor-like teeth on the upper jaw and pointed incisor-like teeth on the lower jaw, and there are no molar-like teeth. The body is silvery with between 8 and 10 horizontal golden lines along the sides with a black spot at the base of the pectoral fin.

Males are typically 15 to 30 cm (6–12 in) in length, while females are usually 31 to 45 cm (12–18 in). The maximum size is 51 cm (20 in).

The salema porgy is found in the East Atlantic, where it ranges from the Bay of Biscay to South Africa, as well as in the Mediterranean. It has occasionally been found as far north as Great Britain.

It is generally common and found from near the surface to a depth of 70 m (230 ft).

This species is a protandrous hermaphrodite. Off South Africa spawning takes place between April and September and there is an annual migration between nursery areas in the Eastern and Western Cape to KwaZulu-Natal. In the northern hemisphere, the spawning season in the Canary Islands was found to extend from September to March. Off Italy the change from male to female took place between total lengths of 24 and 31 cm (9.4 and 12.2 in) and this corresponded to a ages between 3 and 7 years. The size when sexual maturity was reached by half of the fish was 19.5 cm (7.7 in), and most of these fishes were males. There were two separate spawning seasons in this population one in the spring, running between March and May, and a second in autumn, from the end of September to November.