194 BULLETIN OF THE BUREAU OP FISHERIES 



depletion. As stated before, it is not known how to determine the extent to which a 

 fishery may be prosecuted except by actual trial by unrestricted fishing effort. With 

 the present tendency to discourage the use of the most efficient types of fishing gear 

 in Texas, it can not be expected that the annual catch of trout will be increased to 

 any great degree. 



SUMMARY 



1. The spawning grounds of the spotted trout in Texas lie within the inland 

 bays and lagoons, often close to the passes and the Gulf of Mexico. The spawning 

 season extends from early April to September, and the height of the season is reached 

 in April and May. 



2. The young trout are found in large numbers along the grassy-bottomed shore 

 lines in more or less definite localities prefered by the adults as spawning areas. 



3. The species attains an average length of approximately 6, 10, 12, 14, 16, 18, 

 19, and 20 inches by the end of the first to the eighth winter, as indicated by scale 

 study. The extended spawning season, however, causes a wide overlapping of age 

 classes. 



4. Sexual maturity is reached by the end of the second or third year, at a time 

 when the fish generally attain a legal market length of 12 inches. 



5. The food of the spotted trout consists largely of shrimp and small fishes. 



6. The natural passes, such as Corpus Christi, should be closed to all forms of 

 fishing, since they constitute necessary passageways for the trout, as well as other 

 food fish, from the bays into the Gulf of Mexico, and vice versa. 



NATURAL HISTORY OF THE CROAKER, MICROPOGON UNDULATUS 



(LINN/€US) 



Ceoaker, Hardhead 



Perca undtUatus Linnffius, Syst. Nat., ed. XH, 1766, p. 483; South Carolina. 



Micropogonunduiatm; JoTdanand Evermann, 1896-1900, p. 1461, PI. CCXXIV, flg. 570; Welsh and Breder, 1923, p. 180; HUdebrand 

 and Schroeder, 1928, p. 283. 



DESCRIPTION OF ADULT 



The adult croaker has a rather robust body with a somewhat elevated and com- 

 pressed back. The mouth is horizontal and inferior, and the chin has several pores 

 and a row of short, slender barbels on each side. All jaw teeth are small. The 

 color is generally grayish silvery above and silvery white below; the upper part of 

 body is highly irridescent in life. The back and sides have many brassy or brownish 

 spots arranged in irregular, wavy, clique bars on the sides. Both sexes are capable 

 of making a croaking sound, which may be heard when the fish is under the water 

 or after it has been removed from the water. (See fig. 36.) 



DESCRIPTION OF YOUNG 



The larval croaker of about 6 millimeters length is transparent, and the larval 

 fin fold, or membrane, extends from the vent to the anal fin and along the caudal 

 peduncle, both dorsaUy and ventrally. The vertical fins are fairly well differentiated, 

 the anal rays being distinct and usually having a count of II-8. The dorsal soft rays 

 are not so well developed, and the spines are not yet visible. The pectorals and 



