THE KING AND QUEEN FISHES. 127 



are taken in the St. John's as high up as Arlington. They are abundant 

 in the Indian River. Aliout New Smyrna, Fla., according to Mr. S. C. 

 Chirke, It is called "Whiting," " Kingfish," "Barb" and " Bull-head 

 Whiting." They occur in the winter and spring, though seldom in sum- 

 mer. The largest reached the weight of one and a half pounds. Thev 

 average three-quarters of a ])ound, the female being usually the larger. 



They appear about the last of November, and spend the winter in 

 bays and still rivers. They bite in strong currents, not in slack water. 

 They prefer deep channels and sandy bottoms. They are found in the 

 deepest water and prefer cold water. Their food consists of crabs, shrimps, 

 and small crustaceans, and they feed at the bottom. Half-grown to full- 

 grown fish contain spawn. They spawn in the sea in May. They are 

 taken with a hook by the use of mullet or clam bait at half-tide. 

 They bite best in a strong current in winter and spring and fifteen or twenty 

 may be taken in one tide. In the Gulf of Mexico, according to Stearns, 

 they are abundant from Key West to the Rio Grande, and are known as 

 the "Whiting," though at Pensacola the name "Ground Mullet " is in 

 use. He writes : 



"There are two varieties, which, if they have no specific differences, 

 have at least, different habits. One variety lives exclusively in \ery shoal 

 water along the sandy beaches, appearing to take pleasure from the action 

 of the surf, and swimming in small schools. The other inhabits deeper 

 waters ; is found singly, and is of much darker coloring. The former sel- 

 dom leaves the sea-water, while the latter are often found in brackish and 

 fresh water. I have found ripe spawn in the surf variety in April, and be- 

 lie\e they deposit it on the sea-beach. Large specimens of the dark variety 

 were taken in September, 1879, in the Apalachicola River, where the 

 water is fresh. The Whiting is an excellent food-fish." 



The two varieties thus referred to by Stearns have been identified bv 

 Jordan as the two species M. albiirnus and M litforalis, the latter being 

 the surf-loving species first mentioned. 



The Whiting is a delicious pan-fish, sweet and hard, though soon losing 

 its delicate flavor. In Charleston it is regarded as a great dainty. Ac- 

 cording to Colonel Lyman, when Charleston was closely blockaded and 

 fishing was a hazardous occu])ation, the commandant of the garrison, who 

 was a bon vivant, gave $100 in Confederate money for a string of Whiting. 



Some of the. early writers called this fish the " Bermuda Whiting," for 



