Little-head Porgy 



southern Florida. About Key West and Havana it is generally com- 

 mon, but less abundant than the little-head and jolt-head porgies. Its 

 Spanish name is pez de pluma or pluma. . At Key West the conchs 

 assure you that its English name is correctly pronounced sasser-eye. 

 It reaches a length of a foot and a weight of a pound or more, though 

 the weight of those seen in market does not usually exceed \ pound. It 

 is an excellent food-fish and always commands a good price. It takes 

 the hook readily, and affords considerable sport as a game-fish. 



Colour in life, silvery with bluish reflections; the base and central 

 portion of each scale golden, forming distinct longitudinal stripes, the 

 stripes between these pearly or bluish; rows of scales on cheek and 

 opercles with the pearly stripe median, the golden marginal; a deep 

 violet stripe below orbit, not extending forward on snout nor backward 

 on opercles; preorbital deep dull violet like the snout, the ground col- 

 our forming reticulations around conspicuous round brassy spots which 

 cover half the surface; lower jaw dusky-violet; axil golden; fins 'all 

 pale, vaguely blotched with dull orange; iris golden. 



Little-head Porgy 

 Calamus proridens (Jordan & Gilbert) 



West Indies, north to the Florida Keys, and moderately common 

 at Key West. It is the most brightly coloured species, reaches a foot 

 in length, and may be readily distinguished from the saucer-eye, which 

 it resembles, by the different colouration. Colour in life, silvery, with 

 bright reflections above, much brighter than any other species; each 

 scale above middle of side with a spot of rich violet-blue on its base, 

 these forming distinct longitudinal streaks; lower parts of body with 

 pale orange spots. 



Jolt-head Porgy 



Calamus bajonado (Bloch & Schneider) 



This, the most abundant species of the genus, is found among the 

 Florida Keys and West Indies. It is also the largest species, reaching 

 a length of 2 feet and a weight of 8 to 10 pounds. It frequents smooth 



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