SPRAT. 
977 
later or earlier spring-spawning, perhaps even of a 
winter-spawning, the same year. From the South of 
England we are told by Holdsworth" that the true 
spawning-month of the Sprat in the neighbouring wa- 
ters is January, but that this fish also spawns during 
the summer; and he assumes, with reference both to 
the Sprat and the Pilchard, that the winter-spawning 
is performed near land, the summer-spawning at the 
surface in deeper water. But off the coast of Bohuslan 
the Sprat seems to be in a breeding condition in July or 
August as well, for at Stromstad Malm took “females 
almost ready to spawn”, on the 15th of July, 1 865*. 
Of the hatching of the Sprat’s eggs we are igno- 
rant; we do not even know whether the ova float at 
the surface, or sink, like those of the Herring, to the 
bottom. But the fry have been described both by Malm 
and Heincke, and differ, according to the latter, from 
Herring-fry of the same size in the orange tone of 
their coloration, the greater depth and thickness of the 
body, the earlier development of the ventral fins, the 
earlier prolongation of the air-bladder, and the smaller 
number of the vertebrae 
After spawning the Sprat makes its way into the 
island-belt, where it soon recruits its strength and puts 
on flesh, in this respect easily surpassing the young 
Herrings. In the inner island-belt of Stockholm the 
mass of Sprats begin to appear in August. “Till Oc- 
tober Sprats are occasionally taken, after which time 
they again disappear. When they come, they are ra- 
ther lean; but towards autumn they grow fatter” (Sun- 
devall). During the same season, however, Sprats are 
caught in the outer shallows and in the outer fringe of 
the island-belt. Even in winter, as at the time of 
writing (March, 1893), Sprats are plentiful among the 
consignments of Stromming exposed for sale in Stock- 
holm. A successful Sprat-fishery is also carried on 
among the Smaland Islands off Krakvik 0 , but we have 
no information of any such fishery farther south on 
the east coast of Sweden. The chief Sprat-fishery of this 
country belongs to Bohuslan, especially to the neigh- 
bourhood of Fjellbacka. “Here the Sprat puts in an 
appearance at Michaelmas, and remains until some time 
after Twelfth Day. Up to Twelfth Day, or at least 
during the weeks just before Twelfth Day, it swims in 
shoals by itself; but afterwards it is accompanied by 
young Herrings, generally two years old” (A. W. Malm). 
It is ‘ Said to come in both north and south of the 
Weather Islands, straight from the sea (the Skager 
Rack). But shoals of Sprats sometimes arrive later in 
the winter, as in 1892, when this fish was taken on the 
south coast of Bohuslan during February and March 
(A. H. Malm). In England too the main body of the 
Sprat army lies nearer land during winter. 
The Sprat-fishery has much in common with the 
Herring-fishery, and is carried on both with skotar (fine- 
meshed nets) and seines. In Bohuslan the annual take 
was officially stated during recent years as follows: 
1888 .. 1,900 hectolitres, valued at A 1,373, 
1889 4,270 „ „ „ £2,176, 
1890 2,550 „ „ „ £2,077, 
1891 3,803 „ „ „ £4,062. 
From these Sprats, which they can procure fresh, 
the inhabitants of Bohuslan prepare the best quality of 
their Anchovies, a kind of Pickled Flerring, not to be 
confounded with the true Anchovy, which is a rare fish 
in Sweden. But a considerable proportion of the Sprats 
thus preserved in Bohuslan comes salted from Norway, 
where the annual take, according to Collett, sometimes 
exceeds 100,000 hectolitres. In Norway and England 
too Sprats are prepared for food in the same way; and 
according to Day, three million tins of Sprats, pickled in 
a similar manner as the anchovies of the west coast of 
France, are annually imported into England. In Ger- 
many and in certain parts of Scotland the Sprat is 
smoked. This is the method employed in curing the 
well-known Kieler- Sprotten. Mild smoked Sprats in 
oil are not inferior to Sardines. 
The Sprat suffers chiefly from the ravages of the 
same enemies as the Herring. But its eyes are attacked 
by a parasitic crustacean, Lernceonema monillaris. This 
Penellid shines at night, and to this origin Day ascribes 
a supposition common among English fishermen, that 
the Sprat-shoal is often guided and lighted on its way 
by “lanthorn Sprats”. 
a Deep Sea Fishing and Fishing-Boats, pp. 133 — 135. 
b Gt. Intern. Fish. Exhib. London 1883, Sweden, Spec. Catal., p. 170. 
c Intern. Fischerei-Ausst. Berlin 1880, Schwed. Catal., Spec. Th. , p. 25. 
