Ammodytidae

Arctic sand lance

Ammodytes hexapterus

Schools by day then burrows into sand at night

• Temperate
• Circumpolar Arctic
• Northern Hemisphere
• Regional distribution
• Atlantic Ocean
• Pacific Ocean
• East Asia
• North America
• Polar regions
• Elongated
• Medium
• Temperate fish

Ammodytes hexapterus, the Pacific sand lance, is a small, planktivorous, saltwater fish found across the North Pacific. This tiny fish is a member of the Ammodytidae family, or sand lances. The name hails from Greek, with ammos meaning "sand" and dytes meaning "liking to immerse in".