Lesser sand-eel
📖 Overview
This schooling species is usually territorial and burrowing . Feed on plankton. High activity is correlated to periods with strong tidal currents; then they leave their bottom hides and form large shoals. During low light intensity (night and winter) they bury in the bottom .
🔬 Taxonomy
🐟 Physical Description
Dorsal spines (total): 0; Dorsal soft rays (total): 56 - 63; Anal soft rays: 29 - 33. Scales absent from a median band anterior to the dorsal fin and from the musculature at the base of caudal fin. Belly scales loosely arranged, not in chevrons. Vertebrae 65-75. Margins of dorsal and anal fins straight with rays of equal length. Lateral line pores linearly arranged along the unbranched canals.: elongated.
🌀 Behaviour
Sand eel species switch between open water swimming and burying themselves in the sand to avoid nearby predators. When they are not burrowed they live in shoal formations. They spend most of the winter burrowed in the sediment but then enter the open water between March and June to feed as the abundance of prey increases. Even in the summer months when Raitt's sand eels emerge to feed they still burrow in the sand in the night.
🦐 Diet
Diet information for Lesser sand-eel is currently being compiled.
🥚 Reproduction
Reproduction data for Lesser sand-eel is currently being compiled.
🌍 Habitat & Distribution
Marine; brackish; benthopelagic; depth range 10 - 150 m , usually 10 - 150 m . Temperate; 73°N - 49°N, 54°W - 60°E Northeast Atlantic: 74°N (Novaya Zemlya and Bear Islands) to 49°N (Channel Islands, western English Channel), including eastern Greenland, Iceland, Barents Sea (but not the White Sea) and the Baltic (but not the Gulf of Bothnia and Finland).
🌿 Ecology
plankton
📐 Morphometrics
🌡️ Water Parameters & Tolerance
📊 Population Risk & Fisheries
🍽️ Edibility & Flavour
"Lesser sand-eel is an edible species."
- Clear, bright eyes — cloudy eyes indicate age
- Firm flesh that springs back when pressed
- Fresh ocean smell, never strong or ammonia-like
- Bright red or pink gills, not grey or brown
- Shiny, moist skin with scales tightly attached
- Cloudy or sunken eyes
- Strong fishy or ammonia odour
- Soft, mushy flesh that doesn't spring back
- Discoloured or dry flesh
⚡ Nutrition
Per 100g cooked - Source: USDA FoodData Central
| Nutrient | Amount |
|---|---|
| Protein | 18.6 g |
| Omega-3 (total) | 448 mg |
🔬 Mercury Safety
Mercury data for Lesser sand-eel has not yet been assigned. Please consult FDA/EPA guidance for general seafood safety advice.
🌿 Sustainability
🌐 Names & Taxonomy
| Language | Common Names |
|---|---|
| 🇬🇧English | Launce · Lesser sand-eel · Lesser sand-eel, Raitt's Sandeel · Lesser sandeel · Raitt's Sand Lance · Raitt's Sand-eel · Raitt's sand eel · Raitt's sandeel · Sand-eel · raitts sand eel · sand eel · sand lance · Sandeel |
| 🌍CES | smaček mořský |
| 🇩🇰Danish | Havtobis |
| 🇩🇪German | Kleiner Sandaal · Tobiasfisch · Tobis |
| 🇫🇮Finnish | Merituulenkala |
| 🇫🇷French | Equille · Lançon equille · Lançon nordique, Équille |
| 🌍GLA | sìol-gainmhich · sìolag · sìolagan |
| 🌍ISL | Marsíli · Sandsíli |
| 🇮🇹Italian | Cicerello |
| 🇳🇱Dutch | Noorse zandspiering · Zandspiering |
| 🌍NNO | havsil · sandgrevling · kvitsil · tobis |
| 🌍NOB | havsil · kvitsil · tobis · sandgrevling |
| 🇳🇴Norwegian | Havsil · Tobis småsil |
| 🇵🇱Polish | Dobijak niebieski |
| 🇵🇹Portuguese | Galeota |
| 🇷🇺Russian | Европейская многопозвонковая песчанка |
| 🇪🇸Spanish | Aguacioso |
| 🌍SRP | Hujka |
| 🇸🇪Swedish | Blåtobis · Havstobis · Vanlig tobis |
| 🌍TUR | Kum baligi |
🔍 Similar Species
🗺️ Global Occurrence Map
Occurrence records from the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) - 9 records indexed .
👥 Community & Contribute
No observations yet - be the first to log one!
View all observations for Lesser sand-eel ↗Spotted incorrect or outdated data? Submit a correction and our editorial team will review it. Approved edits go live within 48 hours.
Found a factual error, broken data, or inappropriate content? Let us know and we will investigate promptly.