Caspian Sea Sprat Harvest Tops 12,500 Tons

A total of 12,530 tons of different kinds of sprat were harvested from the northern Caspian Sea during the first nine months of the current Iranian year (March 20-Dec. 20, 2020), according to the director general of Fish Harvest Bureau of Iran Fisheries Organization.
“Mazandaran and Gilan provinces accounted for 63% [7,933 tons] and 37% [4,597 tons] of the overall harvest during the period,” Mokhtar Akhoundi was also quoted as saying by IRNA.
The official noted that Caspian Sea sprat harvest is banned from May 4 to June 20 every year to protect the species.
Until the fiscal 1999-2000, said Akhoundi, sprat yields stood at around 95,000 tons per year, but ever since the invasive species of warty comb jelly, also known as sea walnut, was introduced into the Caspian Sea in 1999, harvests of this fish has declined drastically.