Round herring - Round herring (English spelling)

A marine fish belonging to the Clupeidae family of the Osteichthyes class. It is a warm-water coastal migratory fish found in various parts of Japan south of Hokkaido, as well as in the Korean Peninsula, China, Australia, and South Africa. It reaches a total length of 30 cm, has a cylindrical body without laterally flattened, a rounded abdominal edge, and relatively large eyes with adipose eyelids, which are named after the dull appearance of the eyes after death. Its spawning grounds are the coastal waters south of Sendai Bay in Miyagi Prefecture on the Pacific coast and south of Akita Prefecture on the Japan Sea coast. The spawning season is from November to around June of the following year, and is earlier and longer in the southern waters than in the northern waters. It is caught using methods such as purse seine, aguri net, boke net, and multiple hook fishing, and there is a relatively stable catch of approximately 30,000 to 50,000 tons per year throughout Japan. In addition to being consumed fresh, it is processed into salted and dried products (such as Tosa Urume). In recent years, paste products made from red fish meat, including that of this species, have been developed.

[Tadahiko Asami]

In the Kumamoto region, it is called Oomaiwashi, and in the Toyama region, Tombo. In the Kochi region, there is no distinction between sardines and round herrings, and they are all called urumewashi, but when it is necessary to distinguish between them, round herrings are called honurume and sardines are called hirago. When you open the abdomen of round herrings, they are white, while sardines are black, so it is easy to tell the difference between the two. Round herring tastes better when dried than when it is raw, and raw round herring can be grilled with salt, or steamed and dried, called urumebushi, and used as a seasoning in the same way as mackerel flakes.

[Tetsunosuke Tada]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

硬骨魚綱ニシン目ニシン科に属する海水魚。北海道以南の日本各地および朝鮮半島、中国、オーストラリア、南アフリカなどに分布する暖海性の沿岸回遊魚。全長30センチメートルに達し、体は側扁(そくへん)せず円筒形で、腹縁は丸く目は比較的大きく脂瞼(しけん)があり、死後の目の状態がどんよりしているのでこの名がある。産卵場は太平洋側では宮城県仙台湾以南、日本海側では秋田県以南の沿岸水域で、産卵期は11月から翌年6月ごろまでで、南方海域は北方海域よりも早く、期間も長い。巻網、揚繰(あぐり)網、棒受(ぼうけ)網、多鉤(たこう)釣りなどで漁獲され、日本全国で1年間にほぼ3～5万トンの比較的安定した漁獲がある。鮮魚で消費されるほか、塩干品として加工される（土佐ウルメなど）。近年、本種を含めてイワシ類を原料とした赤身魚肉の練り製品が開発されている。

［浅見忠彦］

　熊本地方ではオオメイワシ、富山地方でトンボとよんでいる。高知地方ではマイワシもウルメイワシも区別しないでウルメイワシといっているが、とくに区別するときは、ウルメイワシをホンウルメ、マイワシをヒラゴといっている。なお、ウルメイワシは腹を開くと白色であるが、マイワシは黒いから両者の区別はすぐわかる。ウルメイワシはなまのままより干したほうが味がよくなるが、なまのウルメイワシは塩焼きにするほか、蒸して干し上げたものはウルメ節といい、サバ節などと同じように調味料として用いる。

［多田鉄之助］

出典　小学館　日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ)日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ)について　情報 | 凡例