Nelma


Stenodus nelma, known alternatively as the nelma, sheefish, inconnu or connie, is a commercial species of freshwater whitefish in the family Salmonidae. It is widespread in the Arctic rivers from the Kola Peninsula eastward across Siberia to the Anadyr River and also in the North American basins of the Yukon River and Mackenzie River.

Appearance and lifestyle

Stenodus nelma is an anadromous fish, up to in length. The fish has a large mouth with a protruding lower jaw and a high and pointed dorsal fin. It is generally silver in color with a green, blue or brown back. The meat is white, flaky and somewhat oily. An adult fish weighs from.
The fish eat plankton for their first year of life and then become predators of smaller fish. They live in lakes and rivers and in the brackish water at the outlets of rivers into the ocean, and may migrate to spawn.

Systematics

Stenodus nelma has previously been considered a subspecies of Stenodus leucichthys.
The typical Stenodus leucichthys is a landlocked Eurasian species restricted to the Caspian Sea basin, and now extinct in the wild.
, Alaska