Sardines and pilchards

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About Sardines and Pilchards
Sardines or pilchards are a group of several types of small oily fish related to herrings, family Clupeidae, which are found in European waters. This fish is most abundant in large, muddy, northern rivers and associated lakes. In North America it is found in the Northwest and Yukon Territories and in Alaska. Sardines are long fish with a large, wide mouth containing many small, densely packed teeth. Its body has a silvery color but Pilchards - the adult sardine - are blue-green fish about the size of a herring. These fish are derived from the Latin name Sardina Pilchardus. The flesh of the sardines is white, rather soft, and has a rich flavor and taste. Found in temperate waters, this species can grow as large as 12 inches. Sardines have a single dorsal fin located over the middle of the body. The linear bony ridges on its gill cover distinguish this species from other members of the herring family. They live a medium life: for about forty years the females and twenty years the males. They live by feeding themselves with little fish and algae.