BIOLOGY AND NATURAL HISTORY 95 



These fish support the fishery in North Carolina until August, when they 

 disappear. 



About October 15 a run of fish appears in North Carolina from the north 

 and is joined by fish from the southern sounds and estuaries. These fish run 

 from 10 to 12 inches in length and are known locally as "Chesapeake Bay" 

 fish, "holy jumpers" or "forerunners." They contribute to the fishery about 

 a month and are followed about November 10 by the so-called "Dela- 

 ware" fish, which measure from 13 to 16 inches. These fish, in turn, are 

 succeeded about Thanksgiving by i6-to-2 0-inch fish recognized as the 

 "Boston Bay" or the "Amagansett" fish. All of the fish appearing from 

 October 15 to November are following a north-south migration route. In 

 former years both the "Delaware" and the "Boston Bay" fish were taken 

 at Southport, but for the past fifteen years they have rarely appeared south 

 of New River Inlet, at about which point they make a southeasterly course for 

 the open ocean. 



In December there comes a run of small fish which, according to the fisher- 

 men and plant operators, "just come." Their source or destination is not 

 known. The average size of this fish is the smallest of all those taken in the 

 fishery. The schools are of mixed sizes, which is unusual, and fish from 2 to 10 

 inches appear in the same haul. Further, a boatload shows the greatest admix- 

 ture of menhaden and food fish that is found at any time of the year. 



It is a moot question what causes the migration of menhaden; but the 

 generally accepted theory, which is the oldest one, is that they appear along 

 the coastline when the temperature of the water has reached 50° F. and that 

 they leave when the temperature falls below this. Their appearance in the 

 Gulf of Maine and their westerly progress from south to north in the Gulf 

 closely parallels the warming of the waters to 50° F. Off the North Carolina 

 and Florida coasts, where menhaden are year-round inhabitants, the average 

 monthly surface temperature is 50° F. or above. Directly to the north and 

 south of North Carolina it falls below this in mid-winter. Fish appear in the 

 greatest abundance only after the water has warmed above 50° F. It is 

 generally believed that the fish, departing from a given region, make for 

 the deeper waters nearest to that region where the desired temperature is to 

 be found; but there is "fishermen" evidence to indicate that long coastwise 

 migrations to the north in the spring and to the south in the winter are the 

 rule. Smith (1896), describes the route of departure from the Massachusetts 

 Bay region as around Cape Cod and along the shoreline to the eastern end 

 of Long Island and thence to sea. Fishermen are reported to have followed 

 menhaden from the Long Island coast to Delaware; and at Beaufort, North 

 Carolina, it is commonly accepted as a fact that the schools which leave the 

 Delaware coast in the fall are continuously fished down the coast to this area. 

 This question will not be settled until tagging experiments are undertaken. 



