Stout Whiting, Sillago robusta Stead 1908
Other Names: School Whiting, Stout Sillago, Yellow Cheek Whiting, Yellow-cheek Whiting
A Stout Whiting, Sillago robusta, in Chowder Bay, Sydney Harbour, New South Wales, April 2022. Source: John Sear / iNaturalist.org . License: CC by Attribution-NonCommercial
Summary:
A robust creamy-yellow to sandy pink whiting, becoming silvery-white with mauve reflections below, with a silvery midlateral stripe, and a yellow blotch on the cheek. The first dorsal-fin spine of large specimens has a sharply keeled anterior edge, with a whitish to yellow base and the rest of the keel dark brown to blackish.
Cite this page as:
Bray, D.J. 2025, Sillago robusta in Fishes of Australia, accessed 27 Jun 2025, https://fishesofaustralia.net.au/Home/species/3697
Stout Whiting, Sillago robusta Stead 1908
More Info
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Distribution |
Fremantle, Western Australia, to the Gulf of Carpentaria, Queensland, and Townsville, Queensland, to southern New South Wales. Inhabits sandy to sandy-mud or turbid areas. Juveniles enter bays and estuaries, while adults are generally found offshore. . |
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Features |
Dorsal fin XI + I, 16-18; Anal fin II, 16-19; Lateral-line scales 64-70; Vertebrae 13+20=33. Body depth 18-22% SL; snout length 35-43% HL; first dorsal-fin spine of large specimens with a sharply keeled anterior edge. |
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Feeding |
Juveniles feed on small crustaceans such as copepods and mysids; adults also consume marine worms. |
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Fisheries |
Taken as bycatch in prawn trawl fisheries. |
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Similar Species |
The Stout Whiting has a shorter snout than the Sand Whiting, Sillago ciliata. |
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Etymology |
The specific name is from the Latin robustus (= of oak, hard, robust, strong), in reference to the 'generally stouter form' of this species compared with those of other Australian species. |
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Species Citation |
Sillago robusta Stead 1908. New Fishes from New South Wales. No. 1: 7, pl. 2. Type locality: Rose Bay, Port Jackson, New South Wales. |
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Author |
Bray, D.J. 2025 |
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Resources |
Stout Whiting, Sillago robusta Stead 1908
References
Allen, G.R. 1997. Marine Fishes of Tropical Australia and South-east Asia. Perth : Western Australian Museum 292 pp. 106 pls.
Allen, G.R. & Swainston, R. 1988. The Marine Fishes of North-Western Australia. A field guide for anglers and divers. Perth, WA : Western Australian Museum vi 201 pp., 70 pls.
Burchmore, J.J., Pollard, D.A., Middleton, M.J., Bell, J.D. & Pease, B.C. 1988. Biology of four species of whiting (Pisces : Sillaginidae) in Botany Bay, New South Wales. Australian Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research 39 (6): 709–727. https://doi.org/10.1071/MF9880709.
Gloerfelt-Tarp, T. & Kailola, P.J. 2022. Trawled fishes of southern Indonesia and northwestern Australia. 2nd ed. i-vii, 1-422, Pls. 1-3. See ref online
Gray, C.A., Barnes, L.M., Robbins, W.D., van der Meulen, D.E., et al. 2017. Length- and age-based demographics of exploited populations of stout whiting, Sillago robusta Stead, 1908. Journal of Applied Ichthyology 00:1–10. https://doi.org/10.1111/jai.13464
Hoschke, A., Whisson, G. & Moore, G.I. 2019. Complete list of fishes from Rottnest Island, pp. 150-161 in Whisson, G. & Hoschke, A. (eds). The Rottnest Island fish book. 2nd ed. Perth : Aqua Research and Monitoring Services..
Hyndes, G.A. & Potter, I.C. 1996. Comparisons between the age structures, growth and reproductive biology of two co-occurring sillaganids, Sillago robusta and S. bassensis, in temperate coastal waters of Australia. Journal of Fish Biology 49(1): 14–32. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1095-8649.1996.tb00002.x
Hyndes, G.A., Potter, I.C. & Lenanton, R.C.J. 1996. Habitat partitioning by whiting species (Sillaginidae) in coastal waters. Environmental Biology of Fishes 45: 21–40. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00000625
Johnson, J.W. 2010. Fishes of the Moreton Bay Marine Park and adjacent continental shelf waters, Queensland, Australia. pp. 299-353 in Davie, P.J.F. & Phillips, J.A. Proceedings of the Thirteenth International Marine Biological Workshop, The Marine Fauna and Flora of Moreton Bay. Memoirs of the Queensland Museum 54(3)
Kaga, T. 2013. Phylogenetic systematics of the family Sillaginidae (Percomorpha: order Perciformes). Zootaxa 3642(1): 1-105.
Kuiter, R.H. 1993. Coastal Fishes of South-eastern Australia. Bathurst : Crawford House Press 437 pp.
McKay, R.J. 1985. A revision of the fishes of the family Sillaginidae. Memoirs of the Queensland Museum 22(1): 1-73 figs 1-18 See ref at BHL
McKay, R.J. 1992. FAO Species Catalog. Sillaginid fishes of the world (Family Sillaginidae) an annotated and illustrated catalogue of the Sillago, smelt of the Indo-Pacific whiting species. FAO Fisheries Synopsis No. 125 Vol. 14. 1-87 pp. See ref online
Ogilby, J.D. 1910. On some new fishes from the Queensland coast. Endeavour Series No. 1 23: 85-139 (described as Sillago auricomis, type locality between Moreton Bay and Hervey Bay, Queensland)
Prokop, F. 2002. Australian Fish Guide. Croydon South, Victoria : Australian Fishing Network 256 pp.
Stead, D.G. 1908. New Fishes from New South Wales. No. 1. Sydney : N.S.W. Government 12 pp. 5 pls.
Weng, H.T. 1983. Identification, habitats and seasonal occurrence of juvenile whiting (Sillaginidae) in Moreton Bay, Queensland. Journal of Fish Biology 23: 195-200. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1095-8649.1983.tb02894.x
Weng, H.T. 1986. Spatial and temporal distribution of whiting (Sillaginidae) in Moreton Bay, Queensland. Journal of Fish Biology 29: 755-764. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1095-8649.1986.tb04991.x
Yearsley, G.K., Last, P.R. & Ward, R.D. (eds) 1999. Australian Seafood Handbook. Hobart : CSIRO Marine Research 460 pp.
