early summer (June to July), spawning 

 aggregations of searobins, which inhabit 

 sandy substrates, move into coastal 

 waters. During the same period, schools of 

 scup move from offshore waters into bays 

 and inlets to spawn. Both scup and sea- 

 robins begin to migrate offshore by Octo- 

 ber. Also during the summer months, dense 

 schools of the sand lance are found inhab- 

 iting inshore sand flats, often burrowing 

 into the sediment. This species is an 

 important food item for many pelagic and 

 demersal fish, as well as finback whales, 

 porpoises, and terns. Most of these fish 

 species begin moving offshore by mid- to 

 late September and disappear from the 

 coastal zone by mid-October. Only little 

 skate and windowpane flounder remain 

 through the fall and winter. 



With declining fall temperatures some 

 offshore species migrate into nearshore 

 sand and mud flats. From October to 

 December, sea ravens move inshore to spawn 

 and are commonly observed in water 1 to 



2 m (3.2 to 6.5 ft) deep. Goosefish enter 

 coastal waters in October and November to 

 feed, and sculpin, which are winter spawn- 

 ers, move inshore in late fall. The 

 grubby sculpin is frequently found in very 

 shallow water during this period. 



Summer southern migrants that enter 

 southern New England waters include the 

 summer flounder, black seabass, and king- 

 fish. Their occurrence is predictable but 

 the overall abundance of each species 

 varies from year to year, possibly because 

 of the abundance of specific year-classes. 

 In som.e years, a particular species may be 

 abundant in certain areas while in suc- 

 ceeding years it may be scarce due to 

 natural population fluctuations and/or 

 increasing fishing pressure. 



From May to October, rocky inshore 

 habitats adjacent to tidal flats are 

 dominated by two labrids, the tautog 

 ( Tautoga onitis ) and the cunner ( Tautogo- 



labrus adspersus ) . Both species spawn in 



A large 55 en' rale tautog, Tautoga onitis, emerges from a rock crevice in the spring 

 to resume actively feeding after overwintering in a torpid state. Tautog prefer rocky 

 habitats and adults feed almost exclusively on the blue mussel, Kytilus edul is. Al- 

 though tautog are most abundant south of Cape Cod, they also range into the Gulf of 

 Maine. Strictly a coastal fish, they are seldom found more than 1-2 km from shore. 

 Photo by R.E. DeGoursey, University of Connecticut. 



43 



