264 



UTILITARIAN ZOOLOGY 



objects. In British seas a distinction may, somewhat doubt- 

 fully, be drawn between "summer" and " winter" herrings, 

 which appear to be two distinct varieties or races that spawn 

 respectively at the seasons indicated. Winter herrings favour 

 estuaries, and it is they which are fished, for example, in the 

 Firth of Forth, Firth of Clyde, and Plymouth Sound. Summer 

 herrings, on the other hand, avoid estuaries, and their spawning- 

 grounds may be at some distance from the coast. They are the 



Fig. 1192. Part of a Shoal of Herrings (Clupea harengit 



more important race, and are caught in vast numbers on the 

 north-east coasts of Scotland and the east coast of England. 



The Sprat, Pilchard, and Anchovy, which next fall to be con- 

 sidered, lay floating eggs, like the large majority of marine fishes. 



The Sprat (C. sprattus}. This small species ranges from the 

 north of Europe to the Mediterranean, and is largely fished from 

 the coast of Kent round our south-east and south shores to 

 Devonshire. 



It appears that what is popularly known as " whitebait " is 

 not a distinct kind of fish, but is chiefly made up of very young 

 herrings and sprats, both of which are fond of making their way 

 into sheltered estuaries. 



