Hilsa, also pronounced Ilish is the national fish of Bangladesh and also relished in India's Bengali and Oriya speaking populace. This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... Oriya is the official language of the Indian state of Orissa. ...

The Hilsa shad is one of the most economically important tropical fish of the order Clupeiformes, family Clupeidae, genus Tenualosa and species ilisha. This fish is anadromous in nature, not a common phenomenon in tropical water compared to temperate and arctic regions, and lives in the sea for most of its life, but migrates at least 1,200 km up in some river systems in the Indian sub-continent for spawning. Distances of 50-100 km are usually normal in the Bangladesh rivers. Families Denticipitidae (denticle herring) Engraulidae (anchovies) Pristigasteridae (pristigasterids) Chirocentridae (wolf herring) Clupeidae (herrings) Clupeiformes is the order of ray-finned fish that includes the herring family, Clupeidae, and the anchovy family, Engraulidae. ... Genera Subfamily Dussumieriinae (round herrings)     Dayella     Dussumieria     Etrumeus     Gilchristella     Jenkinsia     Luisiella     Sauvagella     Spratelloides     Spratellomorpha Subfamily Clupeinae     Amblygaster     Clupea     Clupeonella     Escualosa     Harengula     Herklotsichthys     Lile     Opisthonema Subfamily Alosinae (shads, menhadens)     Alosa     Brevoortia     Caspialosa     Ethmalosa     Ethmidium     Gudusia     Hilsa     Tenualosa Subfamily Pellonulinae     Knightia     Clupeichthys     Clupeoides     Congothrissa     Corica     Cynothrissa     Ehirava     Hyperlophus     Laeviscutella     Limnothrissa     Microthrissa     Odaxothrissa... Many types of fish undertake migrations on a regular basis, on time scales ranging from daily to annual, and with distances ranging from a few meters to thousands of kilometers. ... The tropics are the geographic region of the Earth centered on the equator and limited in latitude by the two tropics: the Tropic of Cancer in the north and the Tropic of Capricorn in the southern hemisphere. ... In geography, temperate latitudes of the globe lie between the tropics and the polar circles. ... The red line indicates the 10°C isotherm in July, commonly used to define the Arctic region border The Arctic is the area around the Earths North Pole. ... The Indian subcontinent is the peninsular region of larger South Asia in which the nations of India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka as well as parts of Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar and some disputed territory currently controlled by China are located. ...

Hilsa is mainly available in the Bangladesh rivers Padma, Meghna and Jamuna. Those from Padma are considered to be the best in taste. In India the rivers Rupnarayan (known as Kolaghat-er Ilish) and Ganga are famous for their tasty breeds. The Padma is a major river in Bangladesh. ... Meghna is an important river in South Asia, one of the three rivers responsible for creating the largest delta on earth, most of which is Bangladesh. ... Yamuna is a major river of northern India, with a total length of around 1370 km. ... The Rupnarayan River is a river in India. ... Early morning on the Ganges The River Ganges (Ganga in Indian languages) (Devanagiri गंगा) is a major river in northern India. ...

The roe of Hilsa are supposed to taste as good as (if not better than) Caviar. It is said that in Bangladesh, the people can cook Hilsa in more than 50 ways (e.g., with mustard, curd, brinjal, green banana, baking in young plantain leaves, smoke, fry, and so on). Salmon roe at the Shiogama seafood market in Japan Look up Roe (egg) in Wiktionary, the free dictionary Roe is the fully ripe egg masses of fish and certain marine invertebrates, such as sea urchins and shrimp. ... Look up Caviar on Wiktionary, the free dictionary Caviar is the processed, salted roe of various species of fish, most notably sturgeon. ...

Hilsa is also found in the deltaic region of Pakistan (in the province of Sindh). Here it is commonly referred to as the "Palla" fish. The Palla is actually a sea-water fish which makes its way up fresh water rivers during mating season. The fish was usually found in abundant quantities in the district of Thatta. Recently, however, the lower reaches of the Indus have dried up as water is stored up-stream, and the Palla cannot make its journey into the river anymore.

See also

• Oily fish

Oily fish include: Mackerel Salmon Sardines Swordfish Tuna They are a rich source of omega-3 fatty acids which studies suggest may help sufferers of depression. ...

External links

• Ilish
• Hilsa shad
• More details