80 Herring Growth, Enemies : the Sprat. 



own brood (herring larvaB), and that of sprats or other small fish 

 composing the whitebaiter's catch. Occasionally also nereid 

 worms, and at certain times Mysidae and Amphipods. 



Their rate of growth we discuss farther on, under " White- 

 bait." So far as Leigh fishermen are concerned, herrings bring 

 them profit chiefly in the form of whitebait. Within our waters, 

 as elsewhere, herrings, like all the defenceless Clupeidse, have 

 hosts of enemies ever on the watch. The cod family generally, 

 the garfish, mackerel, skate, and dogfish tribe, &c., besides 

 porpoises, are perfect harriers of shoals. Xor do the gulls and 

 cormorants, &c., wait long for share of the plunder, whenever 

 their quick eyes detect them near the surface. 



(2) The SPRAT (Clupea Sprat tus). Kent and Essex alike 

 have long been noted for the numbers and quality of their 

 sprats. These frequent the whole extent of the coast. Parti- 

 cularly are they found at the estuarine mouths and up the 

 rivers and reaches to the furthest limits of the brackish water. 

 The immense shoals of adults are annual, but somewhat 

 capricious winter visitants. The juvenile sprats associated with 

 the herring-yawlings may be met with at one part or another 

 of the estuary and creeks at least nine or ten months of the year. 



The sizes of sprats that have come under our observation 

 have ranged from 1^ inches up to a maximum of 6 inches in 

 extreme length. The former are the post-larval stage, or their 

 whitebait condition. The latter, which are probably not less 

 than three year old adult fish, are very rare. We have not met 

 with half a dozen of such all told, though we have had a sharp 

 eye to the big ones in boat loads of fish we have scanned both at 

 Leigh and Brightlingsea. Those of 5, 5|, and 5| inches, how- 

 ever are not altogether uncommon. From 4^ to 5 inches, though, 

 may be considered the ordinary size of the prime adult sprats, 

 while 3 to 4 inches are those of ordinary dimensions. Possibly 

 4 to 4J inches may roughly be reckoned as the average size of 

 the adult market fish sent from our neighbourhood. The south- 

 east Kent sprats, however, have a good reputation for bigness 



