Wildlife
Herrings and sardines form the family of fish called clupeids. Also in this family are the menhadens, pilchards and shads, in total it contains 216 species. Most clupeids feed on plankton, and the majority of species are marine, though a few migrate between the sea and freshwater. This family of fish constitutes a vital part of the fishing industry.
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Sardine run
A huge shoal of sardines is attacked on all sides.
A wonderful, action-packed sequence, this clip combined footage from above and below the water to illustrate the squeeze that's put on the sardine shoal. As sharks, dolphins, whales and birds attack from the deep, the surface and the air, a variety of hunting techniques is exposed.
Life on Ningaloo Reef
Dinner guests arrive to join Ningaloo Reef's feast.
Dinner guests arrive to join Ningaloo Reef's feast.
Under attack
Sardine shoaling defence is no match for the numerous predators joining the feast.
This clip from Nature's Great Events was a real roller-coaster to get on film as the ‘annual’ sardine run turned out to be much less predictable than the crew had thought. After many weeks scouring the quiet seas around Africa’s wild coast, and slowly losing hope, the sardine run finally sprang to life. Dolphins, sharks and tens of thousands of gannets whipped themselves into a feeding frenzy unrivalled anywhere in the world. To be in the thick of it was an amazing – and at times frightening – experience.
The following habitats are found across the Herring and sardine family distribution range. Find out more about these environments, what it takes to live there and what else inhabits them.
Discover what these behaviours are and how different plants and animals use them.
Additional data source: Animal Diversity Web
Clupeidae is the family of the herrings, shads, sardines, hilsa and menhadens. It includes many of the most important food fishes in the world.
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Brackish water
Estuaries
Shallow seas
Open ocean
Rivers and streams
Adapted to swimming
Colonial
Tactile sense
Social
Spawning