shad, noun

Origin:
EnglishShow more Transferred uses of general English shad a name used of any of several fish of the herring family.
In KwaZulu-Natal, either of two marine fishes: 1. The elf (sense a), Pomatomus saltatrix. 2. The sardine (sense 1), Sardinops ocellatus.
1887 S.W. Silver & Co.’s Handbk to S. Afr. 185Clupea ocellata. Shad, Sardyn. Used occasionally as pickled fish.
1905 Natal Mercury Pictorial 251 (Pettman)The photo this week is that of the fish known locally as the Shad. It arrived here in large shoals in August.
1913 C. Pettman Africanderisms 438Shad, So called in Natal, this fish is known in the Cape Colony as the Elft.
1930 C.L. Biden Sea-Angling Fishes 34At Natal the local name for the elf is ‘shad’.
1947 K.H. Barnard Pict. Guide to S. Afr. Fishes 108The Elf (Pomatomus saltatrix) known in Natal as the shad (quite different of course from the true shad of the Herring family).
1970 Daily News 18 MayWeekend fishing along the Natal coast was patchy. Angling conditions were good..but, except for a small shad south of Durban, few fish were caught.
1970 Daily News 30 Oct.Shad should be biting at all the usual places north and south of Durban.
1982 E. Prov. Herald 10 June 8Natal anglers are incensed that the catching of elf (known as shad up there) is strictly controlled and yet no controls exist outside that province.
1987 R. Naysmith in Ski Scene Mar.Apr. 13Numerous shoals of bait fish have started returning to False Bay. These shoals..have attracted many shad (elf).
1988 D.E. Pollock in Conserva Oct. 10Several well-known angling-fish species such as geelbek, shad (elf) and red steenbras undertake eastward spawning migrations.
1992 Natal Mercury 3 Nov. 3Commercial fishermen in Natal will be restricted to catching five shad, per person per day, once the open season starts on December 1, the Natal Parks Board announced yesterday.
The elf (sense a), Pomatomus saltatrix.
The sardine (sense 1), Sardinops ocellatus.
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18871992