Smelts

Taxobox
name = Smelt


image_width = 250px
image_caption = Rainbow Smelt, "Osmerus mordax"
regnum = Animalia
phylum = Chordata
classis = Actinopterygii
ordo = Osmeriformes
familia = Osmeridae
subdivision_ranks = Genera
subdivision = "Allosmerus" "Hypomesus" "Mallotus" "Osmerus" "Spirinchus" "Thaleichthys"

Smelts are a family, Osmeridae, of small anadromous fish. They are common in the North American Great Lakes and in the lakes and seas of the northern part of Europe, and run in large schools along the coastline during their spring migration to their spawning streams. The family consists of some sixteen species in six genera.

The fish usually reach only 15 cm and are a food source for salmon and lake trout. It is one of the few fish that sportsmen are allowed to net, using dip nets, either along the coastline or in the streams. Some sportsmen also ice fish for smelt. Smelt are often fried and eaten whole.

Smelts have a characteristic odour, similar to the smell of cucumbers. Smelt roe is bright orange in color, and is often used to garnish sushi.

melt dipping

In Michigan and other northern states of USA, "smelt dipping" is a common group sport in the early spring months (generally late April in the Upper Peninsula, when the stream water reaches approximately 4°C). Fish are spotted using a flashlight (the best smelt dipping is in the middle of the night) and scooped out of the water using a bucket or dip net made of nylon or metal mesh. The smelt are cleaned by removing the head and the entrails. Fins, scales, and bones of all but the largest of smelts are cooked without removal.Fact|date=August 2008

On the Maine coast, smelts were also a sign of spring, with the run of these small fish up tiny tidal estuaries. Many of these streams were narrow enough for a person to straddle and get a good catch of smelt by dipping a bucket.Fact|date=August 2008

Miscellaneous

Smelts have been traditionally an important winter catch in the salt water mouths of rivers in New England and the Maritime Provinces of Canada. Fishermen would go to customary locations over the ice using horses and sleighs. Smelt taken out of the cold salt water were much preferred to those taken in warm water. The smelt did not command a high price on the market, but provided a useful supplemental income in times when wants were much less. The smelts were "flash frozen" simply by leaving them on the ice and then sold to fish buyers who came down the rivers on horse and sleigh. They were also an excellent winter meal. They were gutted, heads and tails removed and rinsed in cold water then dipped in flour mixed with salt and pepper and fried in butter. Served with boiled potatoes and pickled beets, they were a welcome addition to winter fare.

A variety of Smelt, the Delta Smelt is found in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. The Delta Smelt is a protected species.

Catholics of Italian heritage on the Northeastern coast of America often eat smelts as part of Christmas Eve dinner.

Kelso, Washington along the Columbia River in the Northwestern United States is listed as the "Smelt Capital of the World".

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