Clupea Clupea Clupea is genus of planktivorous bony fish belonging to the family Clupeidae, commonly known as herrings. They are found in the shallow, temperate waters of the North Pacific and the North Atlantic oceans, including the Baltic Sea. Three species of "Clupea" are recognized. The main taxa, the Atlantic herring ("Clupea harengus") and the Pacific herring ("Clupea pallasii") may each be divided into subspecies. Herrings are forage fish moving in vast schools, coming in spring to the shores of Europe and America, where they form important commercial fisheries. The species of "Clupea" belong to the larger family Clupeidae (herrings, shads,
Fishing in the North Sea uproot plants and destroy reefs. Fishing in the North Sea Fishing in the North Sea is concentrated in the southern part of the coastal waters. The main method of fishing is trawling. Annual catches grew each year until the 1980s, when a high point of more than 3 million metric tons (3.3 million S/T) was reached. Since then, the numbers have fallen back to around 2.3 million tons (2.5 million S/T) annually with considerable differences between years. Besides the fish caught, it is estimated that 150,000 metric tons (165,000 S/T) of unmarketable by-catch are caught and around 85,000 metric tons