Scaled Sardine
Harengula jaguana
Also called Whitebait, Pilchard.
How to tell it
Bright bait sardine with a faint shoulder spot and no trailing threads; the castnet standard.
- Not a spanish sardine? That one slimmer, no spot. (Spanish Sardine)
- Not a atlantic thread herring? That one trailing dorsal thread. (Atlantic Thread Herring)
Rules for
Every state
| State | Size | Bag | Season | Today |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Florida (Atlantic) | No size limit | No bag limit for bait | Open year-roundFWC 2026 · likely · checked | Open |
| Florida (Gulf) | No size limit | No bag limit for bait | Open year-roundFWC 2026 · likely · checked | Open |
Not specifically regulated in Alabama, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia: each state’s rule for unlisted species applies there (on its page).
On the table
The livewell staple — bait.
In the app
Point the camera at a scaled sardine and the name appears before you take the picture, with these rules for the water you’re standing in. No signal needed, and every catch goes in the log.
Get the appQuestions anglers ask about scaled sardine
How do you tell scaled sardine from spanish sardine?
Scaled Sardine has this: Bright bait sardine with a faint shoulder spot and no trailing threads; the castnet standard.. Spanish Sardine slimmer, no spot.