 Rather than dying immediately after spawning, adults gradually deteriorate.In Tasmania, schools of spent "L. sealii" have been recorded upstream of estuaries, which suggests that adults outliving their first spawning might remain within river systems.Recent otolith microchemistry analysis suggests that Australian whitebait are a semi-anadromous, or an estuarine dependant marine species, as residence in pure freshwater does not appear to occur during the life-cycle.