624 U. S. BUREAU OF FISHERIES 
90 millimeters, continued to utilize Gammarus. Minute periwinkles appear to 
be taken also whenever they are available, as several fish 1 inch in length 
contained over 100 of these small mollusks. Chtopods, which are first 
utilized when the pigfish is a little over 1 inch in length, increase in frequency, 
forming the major part of the diet for all fish from 30 to 90 millimeters in 
length. The study has not yet been continued on fish of greater sizes. 
Doctor Bicetow. May I ask Mr. Towers whether he has made any ; 
determinations us to the age which the pigfish reaches? 
Mr. Towers. They average between 4 and 5 inches in length. I 
haven’t any idea as to the maximum age. 
Doctor Brcrtow. There was some indication that they were rather 
a short-lived fish. 
MULLET 
By ELMER HIGGINS 
For the sake of completeness, the mullet investigations have been included in 
this program. I shall take but a short time tc outline the problems presented 
by the mullet fishery, without giving detailed data in support of the observa- 
tions made or the conclusions that may be drawn. The work is still in a 
preliminary stage, due to various circumstances, although many field data have 
been collected. Much of the credit for this work belongs to several assistants 
who worked with me. 
The mullet fishery of the South Atlantic States is one of the most important 
sources of sea food in that region. The mullet occupies the same position in 
the South that the codfish occupies in the North. It is eaten fresh and salted 
in great quantities, and in the latter condition is a staple food of the poorer 
people from New Orleans to Norfolk. The gray mullet (Mugl cephalus) 
ranges from New England to Brazil, but the important centers of production 
are in North Carolina (which produces from 1,000,000 to 6,000,000 pounds 
annually) and Florida (with an annual yield of 30,000,000 to 40,000,000 
pounds). While two species of mullet occur in the commercial catch, the silver 
mullet (Mugil curema) is practically negligible, and for that reason attention 
has been paid solely to the gray mullet. 
The conviction that the mullet is suffering depletion in the Southern States 
has been growing among the fishermen and others for many years. . While it is 
difficult to demonstrate a heavy decline in the yield in Florida, the total yield 
in North Carolina unodubtedly has fallen off to a marked degree. The maxi- 
mum yield in that State was reached in 1902, when 6,750,000 pounds were 
landed; and from that year until 1918 the trend, as shown by statistics col- 
lected by the bureau, has been constantly downward, until the total catch 
in 1923 reached the minimum of 1,250,000 pounds. The yield in Florida 
since 1890 has been generally upward, although great fluctuations have occurred. 
It is apparent from the figures of the various sections of the coast that the 
fishery in Florida is composed of several units, and hence is subject to inde- 
pendent variations in yield. In general, the trend of the yield on the east 
coast and on the southern section of the west coast has been upward, but the 
trend of the yield on the western extension of the Florida coast has been 
downward since 1897. Here, again, however, the statistics have been quite 
inadequate for detailed examination, and as they are taken at such infre- 
quent intervals they may, indeed, be misleading. Nevertheless, the popular 
idea is firmly fixed, particularly in North Carolina, that depletion is occurring. 
This notion is based partly on the declining yield and partly on the fact 
that grossly wasteful and destructive methods have been practiced in the 
fisheries. For example, for many years it was the practice to seine great 
quantities of very small mullet for use as fertilizer, either spreading them 
directly on the fields or sending them to the menhaden reduction plants. Both 
purse seines at sea, and haul seines in the rivers and estuaries, were employed. 
The popular opinion is supported still further by the fact that formerly the 
bulk of the yield consisted of fish in spawning condition, and in some places 
the roe fish, too large to market profitably, were taken solely for the roe, 
which has sold, when dried, for as much as $1 per pound. 
Because of the importance of the fishery, the growing interest in conservation, 
and the popular belief in depletion, supported by statistical evidence and the 
personal experience and testimony of old fishermen, the problem of conserving 
eS ae eS ee 
ie sean eyei cs 
