Ariake icefish - Ariake Shirauo (English name)

This fish belongs to the order Salmoniformes, family Icefish. It is found in the Ariake Sea off Kyushu, from the Korean Peninsula through the Bohai Sea, Yellow Sea, and the coast of Taiwan to the coast of northern Vietnam. Its body is transparent and almost scaleless. Its head is extremely flattened, and both jaws protrude forward. It has an adipose fin, and its dorsal and anal fins are almost opposite each other. It is easily distinguished from the other three icefish species found in Japan by its upper jaw protruding further forward than its lower jaw, its number of pectoral fin rays being ten or less, and its large body size. It is about 13 cm long. It prefers low-salinity, shallow, murky areas where relatively large rivers flow. It swims upstream to the tidal areas of rivers in October and November to spawn. Resources have decreased, and only a small amount is caught. In addition to eating live fish with vinegar and soy sauce, it is also made into tempura and egg dishes. In the Ministry of the Environment's Red List (2013), it is designated as an endangered species of Class IA, which means that there is a very high risk of extinction in the wild in the very near future.

[Akira Ochiai and Kunio Amano]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

硬骨魚綱サケ目シラウオ科に属する魚。九州の有明海、朝鮮半島から渤海(ぼっかい)、黄海、台湾沿岸を経て、ベトナム北部沿岸までに分布する。体は透明で、ほとんど鱗(うろこ)がない。頭が極めて縦扁(じゅうへん)し、両顎(あご)が前に突出する。脂(あぶら)びれがあり、背びれと臀(しり)びれはほぼ相対して位置する。上顎が下顎よりも前に突き出すこと、胸鰭条(きじょう)数が10本以下であること、体が大きくなることなどの特徴で、ほかの3種の日本産シラウオ類と容易に区別できる。全長約13センチメートル。比較的大きな河川が流入する、低塩分で遠浅の濁ったところを好む。10～11月に川の感潮域に遡上(そじょう)して産卵する。資源量が減少し、わずかしか漁獲されない。活魚を二杯酢で食べるほか、てんぷらや卵とじにされる。環境省のレッドリスト（2013）では、ごく近い将来野生絶滅の危険性がきわめて高い、絶滅危惧ⅠA類に指定されている。

［落合　明・尼岡邦夫］

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