344 Bass, Pike, and Perch 



fore pricked with a sharp awl to let out the air, 

 as otherwise the fish would not sink in the well 

 of the vessel in which it is carried alive to port. 



THE DOG SNAPPER 



{Ljitianus jocti) 



The dog snapper is very similar in shape to 

 the red snapper, but is much smaller and of dif- 

 ferent coloration. It was named jocu by Bloch, 

 in 1801, from Parra's description, in ly^j, jocu 

 being the Cuban name of the fish. It is called 

 dog snapper, owing to its large canine teeth. Its 

 range extends from the South Atlantic coast to 

 Brazil. It is abundant along the Florida Keys, 

 and very rarely strays along the Atlantic coast 

 northward, but has been taken on the Massachu- 

 setts coast in summer. 



It has a robust, somewhat compressed body, 

 its depth a third of its length, and the back 

 elevated over the shoulder. Its head is large, 

 somewhat longer than the depth of the body, 

 with a straight profile and a rather long and 

 pointed snout. The ground color of the body 

 is dull red or coppery, dark olivaceous or bluish 

 on the back, with about a dozen lighter-colored 

 vertical stripes across the body; the cheeks and 



