SCIAENIDAE Nibea soldado, 17.0 cm SL (photo by Seishi Kimura) Nibea soldado (Lacepède, 1802) Soldier Croaker D X-XI, 27-33; A II, 7; P2 I, 5; LLp 48-51; LGR 7-12. Body relatively deep; nape highly arched. Snout not swollen or projecting. Posterior margin of maxilla reaching a vertical through posterior margin of orbit; upper jaw length 2.3-2.6 in head length, lower jaw length 1.8-2.3 in head length. No barbel on chin. Scales on head cycloid, those on body ctenoid; small scales covering soft-rayed portions of dorsal and anal fins. Swimbladder carrot-shaped, with 18 to 22 pairs of aborescent appendages along its sides, first pair entering head beyond transverse septum. Color: body silvery with faint series of oblique stripes along scale rows. Soft-rayed portion of dorsal fin dark distally. Pectoral and pelvic fins yellowish. Size: maximum length 60 cm SL. Distribution: distributed in the Indo-West Pacific, from India east to Queensland, Australia. Remarks: occurs in shallow coastal waters and estuaries.