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Information about Whitebait

This article is concerned with whitebait as the juvenile of various species of fish around the world; for other uses of the term see whitebait (disambiguation).
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A bowl of whitebait
Whitebait are young fish; in Europe the term applies to young herring, but in other parts of the world it is used for similar fish of other species. Whitebait are tender and edible. The entire fish is eaten including head, fins and gut but typically each 'bait' is only 25-50 mm in length and about 3 mm in cross section.

Whitebaiting is the activity of catching whitebait.

New Zealand Whitebait

New Zealand whitebait are the juvenile of certain galaxiids which mature and live as adults in rivers with native forest surrounds. The larvae of these galaxiids is swept down to the ocean where they hatch and the sprats then move back up their home rivers as whitebait.

The most common whitebait species in New Zealand is the common galaxias or inanga, which lays its eggs during spring tides in Autumn on the banks of a river amongst grasses that are flooded by the tide. The next spring tide causes the eggs to hatch into larvae which are then flushed down to the sea with the outgoing tide where they form part of the ocean's plankton mass. After six months the developed juveniles return to rivers and move upstream to live in freshwater.

New Zealand whitebait are caught in the lower reaches of the rivers using small open-mouthed hand-held nets although in some parts of the country where the whitebait is more plentiful, larger (but not very large) set nets may be used adjacent to river banks. Whitebaiters constantly attend the nets in order to lift them as soon as a shoal enters the net. Otherwise the whitebait quickly swim back out of the net. Typically, the small nets have a long pole attached so that the whitebaiter can stand on the river bank and scoop the net forward and out of the water when whitebait are seen to enter it. The larger nets may be set into a platform extending into the river from the bank and various forms of apparatus used to lift the net.

Whitebaiting in New Zealand is a seasonal activity with a fixed and limited period enforced during the period that the whitebait normally migrate up-river. The strict control over net sizes and rules against blocking the river to channel the fish into the net permit sufficient quantity of whitebait to reach the adult habitat and maintain stock levels. The whitebait themselves are very sensitive to objects in the river and are adept at dodging the nets.

The New Zealand whitebait is small, sweet and tender with a delicate taste that is easily over-powered if mixed with stronger ingredients when cooked. The most popular way of cooking whitebait in New Zealand is the whitebait fritter, which is essentially an omelette containing whitebait. Purists use only the egg white in order to minimise interfering with the taste of the bait. Foreigners frequently react with revulsion when shown uncooked whitebait, which resembles slimy, translucent worms.

The combination of the fishing controls, a limited season and the depletion of habitat as a result of forest felling during the era of colonisation results in limited quantities being available on the market. Whitebait is very much a delicacy and commands high prices to the extent that it is the most costly fish on the market, if available. It is normally sold fresh in small quantities, although some is frozen to extend the sale period. Nevertheless, whitebait can normally only be purchased during or close to the netting season.

Australian Whitebait

In Australia whitebait refers to the juvenile stage of several predominantly galaxias species during their return to freshwater from the marine phase of their lifecycle. Comments for New Zealand are generally applicable.

Species referred to as whitebait in Australia include Common galaxias G. maculatus, Climbing galaxias or koaro, G. brevipinnis, Spotted galaxias G. truttaceus, Tasmanian whitebait Lovettia sealii, Tasmanian mudfish Neochanna cleaveri, and Tasmanian smelt Retropinna tasmanica.

Whitebait were once subject to a substantial commercial fishery but today only recreational fishers are permitted to gather them, under strict conditions and for a limited season.

United Kingdom Whitebait

In the United Kingdom whitebait refers to young sprats, most commonly herring. They are normally deep-fried, coated in flour or a light batter, and served very hot with sprinkled lemon juice and bread and butter.

Chinese Whitebait

Chinese whitebait is raised in fish farms and plentiful quantities are produced for export. The Chinese whitebait is larger than the New Zealand whitebait and not nearly so delicate. The frozen product is commonly available in food stores and supermarkets at reasonable prices.

See also

  • Whitebait (fish) - commonly refers to the juvenile of various fish species worldwide.
  • Whitebait Smelt - refers to a species of smelt (Allosmerus elongatus) that lives off the west coast of North America.
  • W32.

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Europe is one of the seven traditional continents of the Earth. Physically and geologically, Europe is the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, west of Asia. Europe is bounded to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the west by the Atlantic Ocean, to the south by the Mediterranean Sea,
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worldwide view of the subject.
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Herring

Atlantic Herring


Scientific classification

Kingdom: Animalia
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In geometry, a cross section is the intersection of a body in 2-dimensional space with a line, or of a body in 3-dimensional space with a plane, etc. More plainly, when cutting an object into slices one gets many parallel cross sections.
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Anthem
"God Defend New Zealand"
"God Save the Queen" 1


Capital Wellington

Largest city Auckland
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Galaxiids are a family of mostly small freshwater fish. Representatives occur throughout the southern hemisphere, including South Africa, South America, New Zealand, Australia, Lord Howe Island, New Caledonia and the Falkland Islands.
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larvae or lemures (singular lemur) were the spectres or spirits of the dead; they were the malignant version of the lares. Some Roman writers describe lemures
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Sprattus
Girgensohn, 1846

Species

See text.

Sprattus is a Genus of small oily fish of the Family Clupeidae. They are commonly fried and eaten in British cuisine [1] .
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G. maculatus

Binomial name
Galaxias maculatus
(Jenyns, 1842)

Synonyms

Mesites maculatus Jenyns, 1842

The common galaxias, Galaxias maculatus
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Tides are the cyclic rising and falling of Earth's ocean surface caused by the tidal forces of the Moon and the Sun acting on the oceans. More generally, tidal phenomena can occur in any object that is subjected to a gravitational field that varies in time and space, such as the
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This article is about ingredients in general. There is also an American soul and R&B group called The Main Ingredient.


An ingredient is something that forms part of a mixture (in a general sense).
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fritter is any kind of food coated in batter and deep fried. The word comes from the Latin frictura ("frying") by way of Old French and Middle English. It can refer to a dessert, a side dish or a main course food.
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omelette or omlet is a preparation of beaten egg cooked with butter or oil in a frying pan, usually folded around a filling such as cheese, vegetables, meat, or some combination of the above.
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Egg white is the common name for the clear liquid (also called the albumen or the glair/glaire) contained within an egg. It is the cytoplasm of the egg, which until fertilization is a single cell (including the yolk).
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This is a List of national delicacies. This list is sorted from where the food originated from. Many of these dishes may be normal to one culture, however to other cultures may seem bizarre.

A delicacy is a food that is particularly prized within a given culture.
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Galaxiids are a family of mostly small freshwater fish. Representatives occur throughout the southern hemisphere, including South Africa, South America, New Zealand, Australia, Lord Howe Island, New Caledonia and the Falkland Islands.
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G. maculatus

Binomial name
Galaxias maculatus
(Jenyns, 1842)

Synonyms

Mesites maculatus Jenyns, 1842

The common galaxias, Galaxias maculatus
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G. brevipinnis

Binomial name
Galaxias brevipinnis
Günther, 1866

The Climbing galaxias, Galaxias brevipinnis
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G. brevipinnis

Binomial name
Galaxias brevipinnis
Günther, 1866

The Climbing galaxias, Galaxias brevipinnis
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Galaxias truttaceus
Valenciennes, 1846

Introduction

The spotted galaxias (Galaxias truttaceus) is a largish, primarily-freshwater galaxias species found in southern Australia.
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L. sealii

Binomial name
Lovettia sealii
(Johnston, 1883)

The Tasmanian whitebait or Derwent whitebait, Lovettia sealii
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N. cleaveri

Binomial name
Neochanna cleaveri
(Scott, 1934)

The Tasmanian mudfish, Neochanna cleaveri, is a galaxiid of the genus Neochanna
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R. tasmanica

Binomial name
Retropinna tasmanica
McCulloch, 1920

The Tasmanian smelt, Retropinna tasmanica
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Motto
"Dieu et mon droit" [2]   (French)
"God and my right"
Anthem
"God Save the Queen" [3]
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Clupeidae

Subfamilies

Dussumieriinae
Clupeinae
Alosinae
Pellonulinae
Dorosomatinae
See text for genera.
Clupeidae is the family of the herrings, shads, sardines, and menhadens.
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Batter is a liquid mixture, usually based on one or more flours combined with liquids such as water, milk or beer. Egg is also a common component. Often a leavening agent is included in the mixture to aerate and fluff up the batter as it cooks (or the mixture may be naturally
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C. × limon

Binomial name
Citrus × limon
(L.) Burm.f.

The lemon (Citrus × limon) is a hybrid in cultivated wild plants.
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For the phrase as it relates to employment, see Employment


Bread and butter is a superstitious phrase from the 19th and early 20th centuries, typically used by young couples walking together when temporarily separated by an obstacle, such as a pole
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supermarket is a departmentalized self-service store offering a wide variety of food and household merchandise. It is larger in size and has a wider selection than a traditional grocery store and it is smaller than a hypermarket.
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Kokopu are a group of three fish found in the rivers, lakes and swamps of New Zealand and is unique to that land. Kokopu are galaxiids and like others of that family it lacks scales and has a thick, leathery skin covered with mucus. Kokopu like streams with plenty of cover (e.g.
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