Shishamo

Taxobox
name = Shishamo

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image_caption = Grilled shishamo.
regnum = Animalia
phylum = Chordata
classis = Actinopterygii
ordo = Osmeriformes
familia = Osmeridae
genus = "Spinrinchus"
species = "S. lanceolatus"
binomial = "Spinrinchus lanceolatus"
binomial_authority = (Hikita, 1913)

Shishamo is a saltwater fish (smelt) about 15 centimeters in length. It is slim and resembles a willow leaf; the Japanese name, "shishamo", is derived from the Ainu name for the same fish, "susam", which is supposed to be derived from a compound of Ainu "susu" "willow" + "ham" "leaf", hence its name in kanji (柳葉魚:Willow Leaf Fish). It is generally dark on the back with a silver-white underside. Considered delicious and popular in Japan, it is grilled whole, often while full of eggs (ko-mochi-shishamo).