Photo: Unknown author / CC BY-SA 2.5 (via Wikimedia Commons)
Clupea pallasii
Pacific Herring
Saltwater
About this species
A silver, schooling herring of cold northern seas, historically vital to Korean and Japanese fisheries and cuisine. It filter-feeds on plankton and spawns in massive coastal aggregations. Small sabiki rigs and jigs take them when winter schools move inshore.
Season
123456789101112
Depth
0 – 250 m
Habitat Spots
NearshoreOffshoreHarbor
Fishing Methods
FloatJigging
Bait & Rig
Small sabiki rigs with berley when winter schools move into Korean harbors; herring chase small flickering jigs and flies just under the surface.
Edibility & Taste
Rich, oily flesh excellent salted, smoked, pickled or grilled; historically vital to Korean and Japanese coastal diets.
Similar Species
Pacific herring lacks the large dark spots of the sardine, is blue-silver above with a deeply forked tail; Japanese anchovy is much smaller with an outsized projecting mouth.
Record Weight
0.5 kg