European Sprat

Identification

The sprat is a small, silvery fish of 8 to 16 cm closely resembling a young herring. The key distinction: the sprat has a sharply keeled belly with spiny scales you can feel by running a finger along it. In herring, the belly is smoother. The back is greenish-blue, flanks silvery. The pelvic fins are positioned in front of the dorsal fin (in herring, beneath it).

Behavior & ecology

Lives in enormous schools in coastal waters, estuaries, and the open North Sea. A crucial link in the food web: as plankton eaters, sprat are consumed by virtually all larger predatory fish, seabirds, and marine mammals.

In the Netherlands

The sprat is common in the North Sea, Wadden Sea, and Westerschelde. Commercially important for fishmeal and as smoked fish. Used as bait fish in sea fishing.