FOOD FOR THE GODS. 63 



THE WHITING FAMILY.* 



Sand Whiting {Sillago ciliata). 



Plate XXXIII. 



This is, without a doubt, one of the choicest of the edible 

 fishes, not only of New South Wales but of Australia; and 

 in the estimation of many people, it is absolutely the finest. 

 This being so, the Sand Whiting always commands a good 

 market price; 6d. per pound wholesale being not infrequently 

 paid, with occasionally as much as gd, per pound. 



This whiting is plentifully distributed over the whole of 

 the New South Wales coastline, where it is to be found 

 dwelling upon clean, sandy bottoms in all of the harbors 

 and the larger coastal lakes, as well as on sandy bottoms in 

 fairly shallow water, off the various ocean-beaches. It does 

 not, however, go down into deep water. The localities men- 

 tioned are its natural feeding grounds, as it subsists almost 

 wholly upon organisms which make their home in, or upon, 

 the sand. 



The usually means employed for the capture of the Sand 

 Whiting is the hauling-net, that is in a commercial way, but 

 large quantities are captured annually by amateur anglers 

 using hand-lines. In fact, this species is always regarded as 

 one of our principal sporting fishes, the gear used by amateurs 

 varying greatly according to individual opinion. Mr. R. E. 

 Eastway suggests the following plan: — The boat should be 

 moored head and stern on the sand flats on a rising tide. A 

 No. 18 varnished silk-twist line, 50 or 100 yards in length 

 strong I yard cast, 2/0 hook, and medium bullet. The line 

 should be thrown from the boat as far as the sinker will carry 

 it, using a whole large worm (not a little bit of it) as bait. 



The Sand Whiting attains a weight of about 2\ pounds, 

 specimens of i pound and more being quite common 



* These fishes are not related to the English Whiting, which a member if 

 the Cod Family. 



