Head to head
Salema vs Gilthead Seabream
Salema
VS Gilthead Seabream
The salema and the gilthead seabream are two silvery sea breams that share the Mediterranean and eastern Atlantic, but they feed on completely different things.
| Salema | Gilthead Seabream | |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific name | Sarpa salpa | Sparus aurata |
| Relationship | A fellow member of the sea bream family | A fellow member of the sea bream family |
| Markings | A silvery body marked with thin, golden-yellow lengthways stripes, and a dark spot at the base of the pectoral fin | A silvery-grey body with a golden band between the eyes and a dark patch at the top of the gill cover |
| Diet | A herbivore as an adult, grazing on seaweed and seagrass | An omnivore eating mussels, clams, oysters, crabs, and other shellfish, along with some plant material |
| Teeth | Small, cutting teeth for shearing algae | Strong, rounded, molar-like teeth at the back of its jaws that crush hard-shelled prey |
| Size | Usually around 30 to 45 cm long | A deep, oval fish of similar size |
| Notable fact | Eating the fish can sometimes cause hallucinations and nightmares, thought to be due to toxins from the algae it eats | Starts life as a male and later changes into a female, and is one of the most important farmed fish in the Mediterranean |
| Conservation status | Least Concern, widespread and abundant from the Bay of Biscay to South Africa and the Mediterranean | Least Concern, widespread and common across the Mediterranean and eastern Atlantic |
Salema vs Gilthead Seabream: common questions
Why is the salema called the dreamfish?
Eating it can sometimes cause hallucinations and nightmares, thought to be due to toxins that come from the algae it eats.
Which one eats shellfish?
The gilthead seabream, which has strong, rounded, molar-like teeth that crush mussels, clams, and other hard-shelled prey.
Which one is widely farmed?
The gilthead seabream, which is one of the most important farmed fish in the Mediterranean, produced in large numbers in sea cages.