Fish
Milkfish
Chanos chanos
A brilliant silver shoaling fish and a dogged fighter - when it cruises with dorsal and tail slicing the surface, it is often mistaken for a shark.
Also known as chanos, melkvis
- Typical size
- Attains 1.8 m
- Habitat
- Shallow coastal banks and estuaries
The milkfish is a brilliantly silvery fish, darker on the back, that feeds on shallow banks and moves in shoals. It spawns at sea and passes through a ribbon-like larval stage that settles and transforms in estuaries. It reaches up to 1.8 m.
Ranging through the tropical Indo-West Pacific, it reaches as far south as the Krom River. A vigorous fighter taken on prawn or fish fillet, its flesh is esteemed, and in the East the young are reared in ponds for food. Cruising with dorsal and upper tail lobe cutting the surface, milkfish are often mistaken for sharks.