FISHERIES OF KEY WEST. 



13 



26. Rachycentron canadus (Linnseus). Sergeant fish ; Crab-eater ; Black 



bonito. 



This species is rarely caught along the Florida keys. It is a good 

 food fish and has some commercial importance in the West Indies 

 and along our Middle and South Atlantic States. It is taken with 

 hook and line on rocky bottom, generally in 40 to 80 feet of water. In 

 Chesapeake Bay, where it is called " black bonito," it is caught in 

 small numbers from May until October, but it is most abundant during 

 June. The largest fish recorded weighed 84 pounds and was taken 

 in Chesapeake Bay during June, 1921. The average weight is about 

 10 pounds. 



Range. — New Jersey to Brazil ; East Indies. 



27. Centropomus undecimalis (Bloch). Snook; Rabalo; Sergeant fish. 



The snook is rarely taken in the immediate vicinity of Key West, 

 but is common on the southwest coast of Florida, where it is one of 

 the principal game fish taken during the winter. There it is taken 

 by trolling, close to shore, from a rowboat that is operated as nois- 

 lessly as possible. At Fort Meyers and Marco large snook are fre- 





Fig. 7. — Bluefish (Pomatomus saltatrix). 



quently seen swimming within a few feet of the shore. It ascends 

 streams but does not stray far from brackish water. The snook is 

 rather uncommon among the Florida keys and is too scarce in the 

 Key West markets to be of local commercial importance. It is con- 

 sidered a fair food fish. The maximum weight is about 30 pounds, 

 while the average is about 3 pounds. 



Range. — Atlantic coast of tropical America. Recorded from 

 Florida ; Porto Rico; Cuba; Haiti; Jamaica; Martinique; Barbados; 

 Vera Cruz, Mexico; Belize, British Honduras; Toro Point, Colon, 

 Mindi. New Gatun, and Porto Bello, Panama: British Guiana: 

 French Guiana ; and Bahia, Sao Mathews, and Rio Janeiro, Brazil. 

 (Meek and Hildebrand.) 



28. Epinephelus adscensionis (Osbeck). Rock hind; Cabra mora. 



This beautiful species is less common than most of the other 

 groupers found about Key West. Its habitat is restricted to rocky 

 bottoms in rather deep water, and it is seldom caught on shallow 

 reefs along with grunts and snappers. Generally not more than half 

 a dozen are to be seen on any one day at the fish markets, but when a 

 deep-water fisherman comes to port this fish is usually well repre- 



