As the debate rages on around the commercial versus the ecological value of forage fish, and sprat in particular, many opinions have been voiced by certain commentators on sprat biology. Some of these myths have been regurgitated so many times in industry articles, podcasts, media interviews, even Oireachtas hearings, that they risk being mistaken for “fact”, when the reality is they are little more than unfounded personal opinions.
Such is the dearth of knowledge regarding sprat in Irish waters that these whimsical notions are rarely, if ever, challenged by anyone.
That ends here!
The widely held assertion that there is no scientific information about Irish Sprat simply isn’t true. Over the last few months, Save Our Sprat West Cork members have trawled through archives to collect as much information as we could find on Sprat biology and ecology from a range of reliable and independent sources. These include both first-hand observations over many decades and peer reviewed scientific literature, some of it commissioned and funded by the fishing industry itself. We are delighted to share with you the result of that endeavour: a comprehensive infographic depicting the life cycle of Ireland’s native Sprat.
The next time you hear industry commentators making unfounded claims about Sprat life expectancy and life history in an attempt to justify the continuation of the wholly unsustainable and deplorable practice of pair trawling for Sprat, please step up and question it, and feel free to share this graphic as widely as possible via social media.
If nothing else, it will demonstrate that if sprat are left in the sea to become forage for everything else, they can live for a lot longer than the two years some commentators claim!
#SaveOurSprat