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catalog Atherinopsidae · forage fish

rough silverside

Membras martinica

Silverside of coastal waters and bays, from the eastern United States to northern Mexico. It has commercial fishing and little presence on the line.

Also called: peixe-rei-rasposo, pejerrey rasposo, rough silverside

Scientific illustration of Rough silverside
maximum
12 cm
depth
3–15 m
overview

who is the rough silverside

Fish of the family Atherinopsidae, up to 12.5 cm. It occurs along the coast, in bays and inlets, at depths of 3 to 15 m. It lives from New York and the northern Gulf of Mexico to Florida and northern Mexico. It belongs to the group of coastal silversides and has commercial fishing. In Latin America, it occurs only in northern Mexico, and rarely appears in line fishing.

Essential profile. Identification, where it occurs and rules, with data from FishBase and the cited regulations. Season, time of day, technique and bait are added once we have a good source for the rough silverside; in the meantime, see the similar species.

how to recognize it

identification

Elongated, silvery fish, up to 12.5 cm, with the silver band on the flanks typical of silversides. It lives along the coast and in bays and inlets, in shallow waters 3 to 15 m deep. Its coastal habitat and small size help identify it among Gulf of Mexico silversides, such as Menidia beryllina, which also enters fresh water.

how rough silverside fishing looks

Loading the next 7 days…

Each card shows the day's index (0 to 100) and, below it, a strip with the index for each hour, from 0h to 23h. from poor to excellent.

Essential profile: the index uses a general fish model (weather, sun, moon and tide), without a season or time of day specific to this species.

distribution

where found

open on the large map

In Latin America, it occurs only in northern Mexico, in the Gulf, in coastal waters and bays.

Habitat: Shallow coastal waters and bays, 3 to 15 m deep.

what the law says

rules for the rough silverside

Summary of the regulations we found, with the source for each. Rules change; before keeping or transporting fish, check with the state environmental agency.

We found no species-specific rule beyond the region's general rules.

catch and release
catch and release Releasing the fish alive, quickly and with a wet hand. During a closed season it isn't always allowed: what the regulation says applies.

Harmless to anglers, with no dangerous spines or teeth.

calculator

how much it weighs without taking it out of the water

Length-weight relationship W = a·Lb (a = 0.00537, b = 3.09; FishBase (relação peso-comprimento bayesiana, estimativa)). It's an average: a fat or lean fish can vary by 10% to 20%.

estimated weight

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sources and references

Essential profile: size, length-weight, depth, countries and conservation come from FishBase and the cited regulations, and the texts were written from those sources. Season, time of day, sensitivities, technique and baits and lures are not included yet, because we did not find a good source for this species.

  1. scientific FishBase: Membras martinica (ficha da espécie)Size, length-weight, depth, habitat, distribution, biology, and IUCN status. Page checked on Oct 13, 2026.
  2. scientific FishBase: nomes populares de Membras martinicaNames by country and language.
don't confuse

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