Sardines, or pilchards, are several types of small, oily fish related to herrings, family Clupeidae. Sardines are used mainly in canning industry and are caught by purse seine nets. Sardines are commercially fished for a variety of uses: for bait; for immediate consumption; for drying, salting, or smoking; and for reduction into fish meal or oil. The chief use of sardines is for human consumption, but fish meal is used as animal feed, while sardine oil has many uses, including the manufacture of paint, varnish and linoleum.