Anchovy Ball
Engraulidae
Tiny teammates with a giant place in the food web.
An anchovy ball can contain thousands of slim fishes swirling shoulder to shoulder. The card's broad name covers the anchovy family, whose members connect microscopic plankton to much larger hunters.
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Quick dive
Creature passport
- Home
- Anchovies school near the surface in coastal and open waters worldwide.
- Favorite foods
- Most strain plankton from the water and also snap up tiny prey.
- Size check
- Usually 2-9 in (5-23 cm)—pencil to banana length
Tell-your-friends facts
Four wonderfully wild things
- 1
Anchovies often swim with their mouths open while gathering plankton.
- 2
Their upper jaw reaches behind the eye, unlike a sardine's shorter jaw.
- 3
Many anchovies live only a few years but reproduce in large numbers.
- 4
Healthy anchovy schools help feed tuna, whales, seabirds, and sea lions.
Ocean superpower
Built to be amazing
A crowded school makes it hard for a predator to choose one target.
Junior scientist tip
What should I look for?
Look for a slim silver fish with a large mouth and pointed snout.
Grown-up research links
We used trusted science organizations to check this profile.