Quigley, D.T.G. and Igoe, F. and O'Connor, W. (2004) The European smelt Osmerus erperlanus L. in Ireland: general biology, ecology, distribution and status with conservation recommendations. Biology and Environment: Proceedings of the royal Irish Academy, pp. 57-66
| Species | Development state | Trait | Primary Data | Secondary Data |
| Osmerus eperlanus | Egg | Egg Buoyancy | Are deposited on a range of substrates around the limit of the tidal influence | Demersal |
| Osmerus eperlanus | Egg | Egg adhesiveness | Adhesive | Adhesive |
| Osmerus eperlanus | Egg | Incubation time | Hatching normally occurs after 20-35 days depending on temperature | 27.5 days |
| Osmerus eperlanus | Larvae | Larvae behaviour | After hatching, the larvae passively drift downstream into the estuary, where they begin to feed on zooplankton | Demersal |
| Osmerus eperlanus | Female | Age at sexual maturity | 1+ or 2+ [Both sex] | 1.0 year |
| Osmerus eperlanus | Female | Length at sexual maturity | Average fork length of the spawing smelt was 15.7 cm and ranged from 13.5 to 20 cm [Both sex] | 15.7 cm |
| Osmerus eperlanus | Female | Absolute fecundity | Can carry as many as 106,000 eggs, although the average is about 50,000 | 106.0 thousand eggs |
| Osmerus eperlanus | Male | Age at sexual maturity | 1+ or 2+ [Both sex] | 1.0 years |
| Osmerus eperlanus | Male | Length at sexual maturity | Average fork length of the spawing smelt was 15.7 cm and ranged from 13.5 to 20 cm [Both sex] | 15.7 cm |
| Osmerus eperlanus | Spawning conditions | Spawning migration period | In Scotland, the adult smelt migrate upstream from the estuaries and into the lower reaches of large clean rivers between January and April | ['January', 'February', 'March', 'April'] |
| Osmerus eperlanus | Spawning conditions | Spawning season | Spawning in the river Shannon takes place between the end of February and early April | ['February', 'April'] |
| Osmerus eperlanus | Spawning conditions | Spawning period duration | In Scotland, spawning can last anywhere from a few days up to two weeks, depending on prevailing environmental conditions | No data |
| Osmerus eperlanus | Spawning conditions | Spawning temperature | Various researchers have found that the spawning initiating temperature ranges from 4-7; 8-9, 4.4-5.5; 4-6; and >4°C | 5.5 °C |
| Osmerus eperlanus | Spawning conditions | Spawning water type | The fish usually congregate in the lower reaches of these rivers for a number of days prior to moving upstream to spawn [Spawning areas correspond to the maximum tidal influence on the river] | No category |
| Osmerus eperlanus | Spawning conditions | Mating system | Females drop out of the river after spawning, while the males continue to spawn with other females | No category |
| Osmerus eperlanus | Spawning conditions | Parity | The maximum age recorded for smelt from the river Shannon is 3+ | No category |