Anchovies as food Anchovies as food Anchovies are a family (Engraulidae) of small, common salt-water forage fish. There are 144 species in 17 genera, found in the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific Oceans. Anchovies are usually classified as an oily fish. They are small, green fish with blue reflections due to a silver longitudinal stripe that runs from the base of the caudal fin. They range from to in adult length, and the body shape is variable with more slender fish in northern populations. A traditional method of processing and preserving anchovies is to gut and salt them in brine, allow them to mature,
Elongate surgeonfish longitudinal yellow stripe runs across the eye and splits in two lines extending anterior the eye. The superior lip is also yellow. The dorsal and anal fin are bluish with a yellow reflection, the base of latters is underlined by a fine black line. The slit of erectile scalpel is darker. Its erectile spine, sharp as surgeon's scalpel, located at the base of the tail is a dread defensive weapon. This fish has a wide distribution in tropical waters going from the west part of the Indian Ocean to the archipelagos in the middle of Pacific Ocean, so it's widespread