4 TWO SPECIES OF MENHADEN. 
Body, oblong, compressed, rather robust ; the back, moderately elevated, rather 
broad; the ventral outline, anteriorly slightly more convex than the dorsal pro- 
file; head, large, rather low, its depth at margin of preopercle less than its 
length ; snout, rather short, 3.86 to 5.14 in head; eye, 3.25 to 5.27; mouth, large, 
oblique; maxillary, broad, reaching vertical from posterior margin of pupil, 
2.12 to 2.44 in head; opercle and preopercle, with prominent radiating striations ; 
gill-rakers, very long and slender, numerous, close-set; teeth, absent; scales, 
large, broad, rather regularly placed, not greatly reduced on caudal peduncle, 
strongly pectinate in adult, less so in young, the serrations very long and 
sharply pointed, with evident grooves between them at baSe; ventral scutes, 
prominent, 31 to 33 in number. 
Dorsal fin, somewhat elevated anteriorly, with a low sheath of scales at base; 
caudal fin, deeply forked, the lobes a little shorter than head; anal fin, low, its 
base slightly longer than that of dorsal; ventral fins, small, scarcely longer 
than snout; pectoral fins, moderate, 1.62 to 2.17 in head. 
Color of back, dark green to bluish; sides, brassy; a round black humeral 
spot present, a variable number of smaller black spots behind it; fins mostly 
pale yellow, some of them often more or less punctulate with dusky. 
This is the most abundant fish in the vicinity of Beaufort, where 
it is taken in large quantities, supplying eight factories which reduce 
it to oil and fertilizer (fish scrap). It is a migratory species, running 
in schools. Single schools ample to load a large fishing schooner are 
not infrequent. Large schools seldém enter the harbor, but small 
schools are common within the harbor. The species occurs at Beau- 
fort throughout the warmer part of the year, but it is not always 
equally abundant. There is usually a period late in the spring, one 
in midsummer, and another late in the fall when large schools pass by. 
It is during these “runs,” generally known as the spring, summer, 
and fall runs, that the fish are taken in large quantities. The fall run 
is, however, by far the most important one, as at this time the fish are 
not only much more abundant than during the other runs, but they 
are also usually bigger and fatter, therefore yielding more oil. Large, 
fat fish occasionally yield as much as 16 gallons of oil per 1,000 fish, 
the average for the fall fish being about 8 gallons per 1,000.2 
This fish has long been used to a limited extent as food by the people 
of Beaufort and vicinity, but it 1s only within recent years that its 
use has become quite general. It is now the custom with a consider- 
able proportion of the population to salt a quantity of menhaden each 
fall for winter use. It is, however, not yet marketable for other than 
local consumption. Since the fish is thoroughly wholesome, either 
in the fresh, salted, or smoked state, it is hoped that people of other 
communities, and particularly those living inland, will also soon learn 
to eat it and avail themselves of an abundant food supply. Ex- 
periments conducted by the writer show that the species when prop- 
erly processed makes a palatable canned product. 
The spawning habits of this fish are still imperfectly known. Men- 
haden heavy with roe are taken at Beaufort during the latter part 
of October*and during November, and it is altogether probable that 
the eggs are pelagic and are deposited while the fish is on its south- 
ward migration. The smallest juveniles observed by the writer dur- 
ing several years collecting measured 50 mm.:in length. Fish of this 
size are not infrequent in the harbor during May and June. They 
grow rapidly, reaching a length of about 95 mm. by the 1st of October. 
The full-sized menhaden is 300 to 350 mm. in length and is seen at 
Beaufort only during the fall. 
«This information was offered by Charles P. Dey, a fertilizer manufacturer of intelli- 
gence and large experience, = 
