to the food web dependencies and fecundity gizzard shad are somewhat the water bound version of "canary in the coal mine." Etymology The gizzard shad is so named because it possesses a gizzard, a sack filled with rocks or sand, that aids the animal in the breakdown of consumed food. Its generic name, Dorosoma, is a reflection of the fact that, when young, the fish has a lancelet-shaped body (doro meaning lanceolate and soma meaning body). The specific name, cepedianum, is a reference to amateur French ichthyologist La Cépède. References External links Clupeidae Freshwater fish of the Southeastern United States Taxa named by Charles Alexandre Lesueur Fish described in 1818 Freshwater fish of North America