Silversides, continued 



sumers, and are important forage fishes for top carni- 

 vores in the nearshore area (Simmons 1957, Hellier 

 1 962, Garwood 1 968, Shipp 1 979, Hubbs 1 982, Benson 

 1982, Shipp 1986). They are considered useful as 

 biological control agents of mosquitoes and gnats 

 (Hubbs et al. 1 971 , Middaugh et al. 1 985). 



Range 



Overall : The range of Menidia beryllina extends from 

 Quincy, Massachusetts to Vera Cruz, Mexico along the 

 coast and in estuaries, bays and sounds, and in fresh- 

 water rivers and impoundments. In inland waters, they 

 are found from the Mississippi Valley to Reelfoot Lake, 

 Tennessee, and the Red and Arkansas River drain- 

 ages in Oklahoma. M. beryllina has been introduced 

 and established in reservoirs in Texas and California 

 (Tilton and White 1964, Martin and Drewry 1978, Lee 

 et al. 1980, Middaugh et al. 1985). M. peninsulae 

 occurs from the east coast of Florida to eastern Mexico, 

 in moderate to high salinity estuarine and coastal 

 waters (Johnson 1975). 



Within Study Area : Within U.S. Gulf of Mexico estuar- 

 ies, Menidia beryllinaoccurs from Florida Bay, Florida 

 to the Rio Grande, Texas. They are ubiquitous resi- 

 dents of shallow estuarine waters (Tilton and White 

 1964, Christmas and Waller 1973, Martin and Drewry 

 1 978, Middaugh et al. 1 985) (Table 5.24). M. peninsulae 

 has a disjunct distribution in estuaries of the Gulf of 

 Mexico, from Florida to Mississippi, and Texas to 

 Mexico, apparently absent from the lower salinity es- 

 tuarine waters of Lousiana (Johnson 1 975, Chernoff et 

 al. 1 981 , Middaugh and Hemmer 1 984, Middaugh and 

 Hemmer 1987a). The unisexual M. clarkhubbsi com- 

 plex has been described from estuarine waters of 

 Texas (Echelle and Mosier 1982), and is reported to 

 occur from Texas to Alabama (Echelle et al. 1989b). 

 The key silverside, M. conchorum, is endemic to the 

 Florida Keys (Duggins et al. 1977). 



Life Mode 



Menidia eggs are demersal. Larvae, juveniles, and 

 adults are nektonic and pelagic, and form schools 

 (Hildebrand 1922, Kilby 1955, Chambers and Sparks 

 1959, Arnold et al. 1960, Martin and Drewry 1978, 

 Wurtsbaugh and Li 1985). All stages have diurnal 

 activity, although one Florida study reports feeding 

 occurring primarily at night (Darnell 1 958, Zimmerman 

 1969, Odum 1971, Ruebsamen 1972, Krull 1976, 

 Middaugh et al. 1985, Wurtsbaugh and Li 1985). 



Habitat 



Type : Silversides are resident species in estuaries 

 (Wagner 1973). Most specimens are typically col- 

 lected in the top 30-45 cm of the water column and near 

 vegetated shorelines (Kilby 1 955, Breuer 1 957, Darnell 

 1958, Hoese 1965, Wilson and Hubbs 1972, Wagner 



184 



