Over all color metallic silver y, back olivegreen. A well-developed pelvic axillary scale present.Ventral keel naked near the vent and rarely completelyscaled. Gill rakers dentitioned. Pharyngeal teeth elongate,slender, curved inward and hooked at the tip. Peritoneumlight brown with numerous melanophores.Swim bladder pointed posteriorly. Gut elongate and Sshape.Tolerant to 14‰ salinity. Maximum age at least5 years, total length 39 cm and weight 680 g. Sexualmaturity attained at 3 years of age. Growth most rapidat age 2 years. Spawning migration into Anzali Wetlandbegins in March and peaks in May-June at 13-32 cmtotal length, 65 g weight and 2-5 years old, but mostlyin age group 3. Sex ratio 1male:3females. An intermittentspawner with three batches of eggs, only two ofwhich laid at an interval of 18-19 days. Absolute fecundityup to 54,700 eggs of up to 1.9 mm in diameter.Spawning in second half of April to end of August at 18-25°C, on gravel. Food include algae, crustaceans, diatoms,chironomids and plants.