Economic Importance: 



An excellent food fish when fried or broiled, scup are sometimes 

 so abundant that the fishermen sell the smaller sized scup for trash 

 fish. During 1957, 5,401,010 pounds, valued at $308,396, were 

 landed at Rhode Island ports. 



Genus Calamus 



(154) Calamus bajonado (Bloch and Schneider) 1801 

 Jolt-head porgy, bajonado 



Specimens: 



This is a tropical species found from the West Indies to Brazil. 

 On November 25, 1955, a nine pound, eight ounce, 650 mm. (TL) 

 jolt-head porgy was taken by Captain George Berg on the trawler 

 Old Mystic, three miles SE of Watch Hill. The fish was sent to the 

 Bingham Oceanographic Laboratory where it was positively identi- 

 fied as Calamus bajonado by J. E. Morrow. This specimen was a 

 new record for the Atlantic coast, as it had never been recorded 

 previously north of Bermuda. Further morphological information 

 about this species, which closely resembles the scup, can be found in 

 Morrow (1956). 



Genus Lagodon 



(155) Lagodon rhomboides (Linnaeus) 1766 

 Pinfish, sailors 1 choice, bream 



Specimens: (PLATE 51) 



This tropical species is a rare summer stray into Rhode Island 

 waters. A few specimens have been observed mixed with scup, which 

 they closely resemble, during June and July, 1956 and 1957, in the 

 traps at Point Judith. Hildebrand and Schroeder (1928) state that 

 the maximum size recorded for pinfish is 13 inches. Breder (1929) 

 states that this species reaches a length of about ten inches. Beebe 

 and Tee-Van (1933) state that the pinfish grows to slightly less 

 than a foot. 



On June 8, 1955, the author collected and photographed a pinfish 

 from the trap at Point Judith which he believes to be a new size 

 record for this species. This pinfish was 14.25 inches (362 mm.) 



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