The false herring is found in the Western Atlantic Ocean from eastern Florida and the Bahamas through the Gulf of Mexico south to Santa Catarina in Brazil.

[4] The genus Harengula is classified within the family Dorosomatidae which belongs to the suborder Clupeoidei in the order Clupeiformes.

It scales have a rather strong attachment and are not easily shed.It is a silvery fish with a dark greenish back and an indistinct yellow or light orange spot on the margin of the operculum.

[2] Harengula clupeola is found in the Western Atlantic Ocean where it occurs from eastern Florida and the Bahamas through the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean Sea, south to Santa Catarina in Brazil.

It is a nocturnal predator feeding on pteropods, polychaetes, fish eggs, and zooplankton, particularly copepods.